Aquaculture in Moreton Bay

Abstract

Moreton Bay prawn farmers have prospered over the past 20 years, despite endemic prawn diseases, broodstock shortages, and regulations on nutrient release into the surrounding environment. The established intensive prawn farms on the Logan River sustainably expanded in the early 2000s and successfully competed with a mass of seafood imports. However, the recent outbreak of the exotic white spot disease has been a major setback for the industry. The farmed oyster industry in Moreton Bay has also been challenged. Once a dietary staple of the Quandamooka People and South East Queensland’s largest and single most important fishery, production of the native Sydney rock oyster dwindled during the twentieth century. The inefficiency of oyster areas has been linked to a short harvest season, disease, competition from the exotic Pacific oyster, a high proportion of hobbyist farmers and poor water quality in the Bay. Better economic opportunities in nearby Brisbane may negate regulators’ plans to attract more ambitious farmers to the industry. Currently, within Moreton Bay, oyster farming requires improvements in efficiency, prawn farms have commenced restocking after closures due to disease outbreak and there are no sea cage farms. The future of aquaculture in Moreton Bay requires proactive management that recognises the complex ways in which present-day metropolitan and catchment development challenge sustainable growth of the industry. By careful consideration of these issues and applying recent advances in Australian aquaculture technologies, aquaculture enterprises in the region could achieve sustainable growth with an effective balance between economic success and conserving Moreton Bay’s unique ecosystem.