Submission to the Senate Environment and Communications References Committee Inquiry into Fin-fish Aquaculture in Tasmania

This submission has been prepared to provide the Committee with an understanding of the substantial body of research undertaken over the last two decades by the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) that has contributed to our knowledge of the environmental impacts and interactions of finfish aquaculture in Tasmania. Research generated by the University of Tasmania (both as IMAS and its predecessors, including the Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute (TAFI) and the State Department’s Fisheries Laboratory, hereafter referenced as IMAS), has provided the knowledge base to support decisions regarding many issues relating to regulation of the marine aquaculture industry, and has been central to the development, implementation, and review of the aquaculture environmental monitoring programs currently employed in Tasmania. IMAS has also played a key role in providing the system understanding and recommendations that have supported ongoing development and management of the salmon industry in Tasmania. IMAS research has been responsive to issues and concerns raised by industry, government, and the broader community, and IMAS researchers have also identified matters directly. The focus of our research has been collaborative; acknowledging that marine and coastal ecosystems are a shared resource. Consequently, in making management recommendations we have sought to promote multiple-use management solutions and to provide advice that supports sustainable management practices for all stakeholders. IMAS aquaculture research is acknowledged as world class, and our environmental research has been identified as world’s best practice in international standards (e.g. WWF: Salmon Aquaculture Dialogue, 2012) and is regularly cited in relation to the development of aquaculture management strategies globally (e.g. Reish et al., 2005; Nobre, 2009; Holmer, 2010; Steckbauer et al., 2011; Keeley et al., 2012; Bannister et al., 2015