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A three-year extension to a ban on fishing for Eastern Blue Groper in New South Wales, Australia, has angered the country’s tackle trade body, which has urged a rethink.

The Eastern Blue groper is NSW’s state fish but has been protected from line fishing for the past 12 months and that is set to continue for a further three years.

The NSW government says this will enable further research and monitoring on the species and combines with the long-term existing prohibition on spearfishing and commercial fishing.

While the Australian Fishing Trade Association (AFTA) acknowledged the original 12-month ban last March, as a result of a very public illegal spearfishing of a groper, the organisation said it disagreed with the ban.

It said: “Whilst AFTA fully supports the closure of any fishery when there is clear scientific evidence to show that this is the only way to sustain the fishery, AFTA does not believe this to be the case on this occasion.

“AFTA supports the existing spearfishing ban on Eastern Blue Groper introduced in 1969 and from commercial fishing since 1980. Indeed, AFTA would support more substantial penalties for those who knowingly take these fish, but the total ban and penalties should not have been expanded to include recreational line fishers.”

Outlining the reasoning for the ban, Tara Moriarty, the Minister for Agriculture, explained: “NSW’s state fish, the Eastern Blue Groper, will continue being protected after the Government considered a range of advice, community feedback and scientific research.

“There is a strong community interest in the State’s iconic Eastern Blue Groper, and there is an expectation that we take every step possible to understand any potential impacts that climate change may be having on the species.

“Three further years of scientific monitoring will deliver a deeper level of understanding of how this wonderful fish is coping with warming conditions and what impact those conditions are having on the population, particularly in our inshore waters where people interact with the Eastern Blue Groper.

“I know some fishers will be disappointed, but I also know there are many in the NSW community, including fishers, who want this state fish protected and that is what the Government is doing.”

Anyone caught contravening the closure and taking Eastern Blue Groper in NSW by any method will face a $500 penalty infringement notice and/or maximum court-imposed fines of $22,000 or imprisonment for six months (or both) for a first offence and $44,000 or imprisonment for 12 months (or both) for a second or subsequent offence.

Any Eastern Blue Groper incidentally caught while line fishing must be released.