What it does
The Fisheries Act 1995 (Vic) establishes a comprehensive statutory framework for the regulation, management, and conservation of fisheries resources in Victorian waters. Its core purpose, stated in s.1, is to provide a modern legislative structure that replaces the outdated Fisheries Act 1968, while making consequential changes to other statutes. At its heart, the Act operationalises the objectives set out in s.3: ecologically sustainable development of fisheries and aquaculture; protection of habitats, ecosystems, genetic diversity, and aquatic processes; promotion of viable commercial and recreational fishing for present and future generations; facilitation of access for commercial, recreational, traditional, and non-consumptive uses; rationalisation of the commercial industry; and encouragement of stakeholder and community participation in management.
Operationally, the Act does this through a multi-layered system. Part 1 contains preliminary provisions, including an expansive definition of "fish" in s.5 (covering vertebrates, cartilaginous fish, molluscs, crustaceans, echinoderms, and declared aquatic invertebrates) and "fishery" in s.7 (which can be defined by species, area, method, equipment, boat class, licence class, or season). "Victorian waters" are defined in s.8 to include state limits, adjacent coastal waters under arrangements, and certain extraterritorial activities. The Act binds the Crown (s.9) and declares wild fish as Crown property until lawfully taken (s.10).
Commonwealth-State arrangements are addressed in Part 2, allowing the Minister to enter agreements under the Commonwealth Fisheries Management Act 1991 (Cth) for joint authorities or state management of fisheries (ss.13, 19). Once an arrangement is in force, state law applies to the fishery (s.20), with joint authorities exercising Minister powers (s.22). This interacts with the Offshore Constitutional Settlement.