Draft Recovery Plan for the Giant Freshwater Lobster (Astacopsis gouldi)

2016
Department of the Environment
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Public comment

You are invited to comment on this draft recovery plan in accordance with the provisions of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act).

The public comment period closes 8 August 2016.

If you wish to comment on this draft plan, please send your comments, quoting the title of the plan, to:

Email: recoveryplans@environment.gov.au

Mail:
The Director
Terrestrial Threatened Species Section
Wildlife, Heritage and Marine Division
Department of the Environment
GPO Box 787
Canberra ACT 2601

About this Document

This document constitutes the ‘Draft Recovery Plan for the Giant Freshwater Lobster (Astacopsis gouldi)’. The plan considers the conservation requirements of the species across its range and identifies the actions to be taken to ensure the species’ long-term viability in nature, and the parties that will undertake those actions.

This recovery plan is a revision of the 2006 Recovery Plan for the Tasmanian Giant Freshwater Lobster (Astacopsis gouldi) (DPIW, 2006). The 2006 recovery plan was reviewed in 2015 by an expert panel that concluded that a new recovery plan should be developed for the species.

The overarching objectives of this recovery plan are to:

  • Conserve, protect and manage identified key habitats to support increasing populations of lobsters, with a healthy demographic structure
  • Address threats and improve habitat quality across the species’ range.

To achieve these objectives a range of strategies will be employed, including: reducing the impacts habitat degradation and illegal fishing; improving habitat quality and increasing habitat protection; increasing understanding of the species biology and ecology, and its ability to recovery from past threats; and promoting the giant freshwater lobster as a flagship species for healthy catchment management. In particular, it is believed that the species has a high probability of true recovery if the following three goals are achieved:

  • Habitat protection is increased in key locations;
  • Upstream land use activities are appropriately managed to prevent impacts on key downstream habitats; and
  • Fishing ban enforcement activities are focussed on tackling poaching.