Minutes of AAT GM 14 October 2012

ANGLERS ALLIANCE TASMANIAMINUTES OF GENERAL MEETINGSunday 14 October 2012 at Zeps Campbell TownPresentM Stevens AFTA Chair, Terry Byard STLAA Vice Chair, Malcolm Crosse Exec committee, Gary France TGALT Exec committee, John Diggle IFS, John Broomby Northern Forum, Norm Cribbin STLAA, Alan Gordon BOD, Charles Thompson NWFA, Mathew Ling NWFA, Adrian Hope TFFA, Greg Peart Indep South, Denis Edwards Exec Assistant.ApologiesStephen Bax, Alex Grodski, Roger Butler, Phil Williams, Leroy TirantMinutes of previous meetingMotion: “to accept the minutes of the meeting held 29 July 2012”Moved Terry Byard.  Seconded Malcolm Crosse. CarriedMatters arisingAAT to co-ordinate “Clean Up Australia Day” with interested clubs and liaise with the IFS  so that the most is made of the media opportunity.Chairmans welcomeChairman , Mike Stevens, welcomed membersConfirmation of the Minutes of the 2011 AGMT Byard moved that the minutes of the 2011 AGM be accepted. Secondedby G France. Carried.Business arising from the minutesDiscussion on updating the Constitution including membership clauses. Greg Peart to review the constitution and recommend to the executive any changes needed.Inland Fisheries ReportJohn Diggle reported on IFS activity.Penstock Lagoon. Letter to AAT from IFS was tabled and discussed. The proposals which are precautionary and non-regulatory, are designed to safeguard water quality and have received general support to date. The recommendations are –

• That a designated 50m wide corridor for petrol powered boating be established on Penstock Lagoon. This corridor will run in a line from the end of the boating channel at the northern end across to Crisps Point on the Eastern side, then down the centre of the lagoon towards the Lily Pond at the southern end.
• That wading be restricted to within 50m of the shore.
• That the no motorised boating zone in Beginners Bay be maintained.
• Those anglers using petrol outboard motors on Penstock Lagoon use 4 stroke or low emission 2 stroke motors.
• That any petrol powered boats used on Penstock Lagoon be 5m or less in length.
• The 5 knot speed limit will continue to apply to the whole lagoon including the motorised boating corridor.
• The recommendations were supported by the meeting including TGALT and the NWFA would prefer electric motors only and wondered about the effectiveness of the self-regulatory approach.

Licence sales.  Early sales indicate approx 5% revenue increase or approx 2-2.5% increase in angler numbers.Talbots Lagoon.  IFS is negotiating with Gunns regarding access and water use.Four Springs.  Some access closed due to safety issuesMarketing.  IFS is involved with TGALT and Tourism Tas to produce a marketing plan to increase angler numbers. Research has shown that the biggest markets are Tas and Vic and these will be the target markets.Anglers Access.Mersey is under way.Anglers access is being negotiated for Rostrevor Dam north of Triabunna and Rileys Creek dam near Geeveston.Road access to Curries and Brushy being repaired.Paloona is being discussed with Hydro, the proximity of the proposed access to the spillway is being considered.Access signage is being erected on the George and South Esk Rivers.The search for a major dam site in the South East continues.Woods Lake and Brandon Bay boat ramps being upgraded to concrete.Stocking sheet for 30 June- 12Oct tabled. It is thought that stocking of fry (1-5 gms) gives better results than stocking fingerlings (10-20gms) and this is now the focus.Four Springs sustainability of harvest is being assessed and may result in a bag limit review.Carp eradication is at a critical stage with extra staff being involved in a big effort to fish down as many carp as possible prior to spawning. Research continues into carp sterilisation.Talks with Hydro are taking place regarding the possible breach of Lake Gordon into Lake Pedder because of the present high water levels.IFS Annual Report will be available on the IFS website in November.WebcamsMalcolm Crosse gave a presentation on the installation of the webcams which was informative and very well received.Cost for the four solar powered cameras installed to date (Bronte, Little Pine, Penstock and Burbury) was approx. $6000 each which is right on budget.Discussion on image quality resolved that a higher image was desirable say with 2minute frames rather than continuous streaming.The addition of weather stations was canvased but not resolved and some thought that additional webcams may be better use of any spare money.Malcolm suggested that because power and a strong signal are available at Great Lake that a pan/tilt/zoom camera could work well.Running costs and maintenance issues will be important and means of funding these was discussed . Ongoing sponsorship is desirable and a small yearly fee for anglers accessing the webcams may be necessary.It was resolved to proceed with the webcam installations at Great Lake and Augusta subject to a costing review of the existing webcam installations.Irrigation reviewA review of the status of the South Esk, Macquarie and Midlands schemes was tabled. Concern was expressed that the proposed minimum drawdown point for Arthurs will be below the agreed risk band. AAT to seek clarification from Hydro.MAST Grants

• Letter from MAST tabled that listed successful AAT funding applications for;
• Woods Lake - concrete boat ramp
• Arthurs Lake – increase height of break wall
• Great Lake – concrete Brandum Bay boat ramp
• Bradys Lake – site plan development
• Lake Burbury- upgrade Camping Ground boat ramp
• Lake Barrington- pontoon system at northern boat ramp

Northern forumThere has been a good response from the open letter sent to all northern clubs and further follow up after clubs have met should elicit a positive outcome for Northern representation.Insurance changesInsurance premiums will now fall due on the 1STAugust to align with the opening of the trout season. This will be reflected in this years accounts that            will be pro rata, ie for 9 months since in previous years they fell due on 30th Oct.Accounts will be sent out this week and are due on the 30th Nov. There is no change to yearly insurance amounts.Australian Fly Fishing MuseumMike Stevens gave an interesting and informative presentation on the proposed Australian Fly Fishing Museum to be located in a cottage at Clarendon, a National Trust property on the banks of the South Esk River south of Evandale.If you have any old money, old documents, photos, rods, reels, flies etc Mike would like to hear from you.General businessFishing Habitat Fund . Mike Stevens and John Diggle to meet with the Trustees.Anglers Hall of Fame. Query on what’s happening , the committee has not met for 3yrs. John Diggle offered to follow up.Meeting venues. Suggestion that meetings should be held at varied venues and if possible at the lakes in summer so that delegates could incorporate some fishing with an overnight stay. John Diggle suggested the IFS at Liawenee for the next meeting.Next  meeting:   Sunday 17 Feb 2013 at IFS Liawenee.ACTION LISTMS/JD     Meet Trustees of Fishing Habitat FundJD           Anglers Hall of FameGP          Review of ConstitutionTB/DE      Clean up Australia Day co-ordinationDE           Letter to Hydro on Arthurs outletHydro Pedder/ Gordon presentationCode of Practice