• Home
• Batemans
• Cape Byron
• Jervis Bay
  • Recreational and commercial activities
  • Consultation and management
  • Explore the park
  • Education Resource Kit
  • Holiday Activity Program
  • Contact us
• Lord Howe Island
• Port Stephens-Great Lakes
• Solitary Islands

1. Home
2. Jervis Bay Marine Park
3. Recreational & commercial activities

Jervis Bay Marine Park - recreational and commercial activities

The Jervis Bay Marine Park Zoning Plan allows different activities in different park zones as per the summary below. It’s best to use the summary in conjunction with a printout of the marine park zoning maps.

Park activity summary

Note: = permitted, = prohibited, P=permit required. Special conditions indicated by (a) to (k).

Activity	General use zones	Habitat protection zones	Sanctuary zones
Commercial fishing
Line fishing
Spanner crab netting
Lift netting for bait (non-saleable only)		P (a)
Fish trapping (max 10 traps)
Crab trapping
Lobster tapping
Hand gathering (pipis & beachworms)
Beach hauling		P (b)
Prawn hauling
Garfish hauling		P (c)
Restricted purse seine netting	P	P (d)
Setline/dropline
Longline (surface & demersal)
Estuary mesh netting
Scallop dredging
Scallop collecting
Recreational fishing
Line fishing
Trapping
Spearfishing		(e)
Netting		(f)
Collecting
Recreational (bait/food)		(g)
Scientific/educational	P	P	P
For private aquariums	P	P
For commercial aquariums
Commercial tourism
Whale watching	P	P	P
Charter fishing	P	P
Charter scuba/snorkelling	P	P	P
Recreational activities
Boating
Scuba diving/snorkelling
Personal water craft	(i)
Other activities
Aquaculture (intensive)
Aquaculture (low-impact)		P (j)
Line/spearfishing competitions	P	P
Surfing/sailing competitions	P	P	P
Research	P	P	P
Anchoring	(h)

 

• Defences for possession of fishing equipment in marine park sanctuary zones 120 Kb

Special conditions for commercial and recreational activities

(a) Lift netting, for live bait for own use by existing operators only, may be allowed in designated areas within habitat protection zones subject to meeting permit requirements

(b) Beach hauling may be allowed in designated areas within habitat protection zones subject to meeting permit requirements

(c) Garfish hauling may be allowed in designated areas within habitat protection zones subject to meeting permit requirements

(d) Restricted purse seine bait netting, for live bait for own use by existing operators only, may be allowed in designated areas within habitat protection zones subject to meeting permit requirements

(e) Spearfishing is prohibited in the Hyams Beach Habitat Protection Zone

(f) Recreational nets permitted for the taking of prawns and crabs in the habitat protection zone are the scoop, landing, scissor (push) or hoop (lift) nets.

(g) Restrictions apply to the species that can be collected

(h) Anchoring is allowed in designated anchoring areas within sanctuary zones. Anchoring is allowed in any zone when undertaken in the interests of safety of life at sea.

(i) Personal water craft are allowed to traverse sanctuary zones directly to and from the point of launching only, at a maximum speed of 10 knots.

(j) Low-impact aquaculture (i.e. aquaculture which does not use supplementary food to grow the product under cultivation) of shellfish on long-lines is not prohibited in habitat protection zones, provided all the requirements of environmental and planning legislation are satisfied, including environmental assessment, public consultation and development approval†. Aquaculture in the Jervis Bay embayment cannot exceed more than two per cent of the area of the park.

(k) Infrastructure development and/or maintenance may be approved subject to meeting the requirements of relevant legislation.

† In addition to the normal detailed environmental approval process required for such projects, section 19 of the Marine Parks Act requires the consent authority to take into consideration: (1) the need to conserve marine biological diversity and marine habitats in the park; (2) the need to maintain ecological processes in the park; and (3) the need to provide opportunities for public appreciation and enjoyment of the park. The consent of the Ministers responsible for the Marine Parks Authority is also required.