LONG RANGE CAMERAS AND DRONES
TO MONITOR WA COMPLIANCE
THE WA fisheries department has launched “Operation Shadowedge” in Esperance,
Houpetoun and Collie along the state’s southern coastlines. Its fisheries officers will be
using aerial surveillance, long range cameras and drones to make sure commercial and
recreational fishers stick to the rules covering fishing and harvesting activities. Recent
surveillance actions have proved effective in identifying landing locations of commercial
abalone catches and providing evidence of out of season marron fishing. The surveillance
efforts are being supplemented by various education campaigns aimed at encouraging
voluntary compliance and keeping everyone up-to-date on current fisheries rules and
regulations. WA considers it has some of the world’s best fisheries and aquatic resources
and that it’s vital that everyone continues to work together to protect them.● By John Newbery
FISH FACTS:
CODS LOSE
THEIR CODS
ESTUARY cods (genus Epinephelus) are
amongst my favourite fishes. These highly
predatory tropical species ambush a variety
of smaller prey with a “can do” attitude -
often trying to eat something first and
working out whether it will actually fit into
their mouth later. Shy they are not, especially
when it comes time to get inside a crab pot to
plunder the bait (whether it is guarded by a
big muddie or not!) But arguably the most
interesting thing about estuary cods are the
details of their sex lives.● By Dr Ben Diggles
ENVIRONMENT:
JUST HOW GOOD
ARE WE?
THIS week’s inbox seems to have been full
of horror stories about unsustainable fishing
practices and ugly outcomes. The ABC ran
an expose on Indonesian shark fishing,
where they visited a major fish market site
with prior notice and saw nothing
particularly worrying or illegal.● By John Newbery
ONLINE THIS MONTH
SNIPPETS
18 fishingworld.com.au | September 2019GME CELEBRATES 60 YEARS
FOR more than 60 years, GME has
been active in the communication
technology space. The company remains
a family owned operation and is 100 per
cent Australian owned.
The GME journey started in 1959 as
Standard Components Pty Ltd, founded
by Edward Dunn. Originally, they
specialised in TV tuner reconditioning
before branching out into other aspects of
TV services with their range of Kingray
products in 1964.
In 1972 Dunn partnered with a close
friend, Phil Dulhunty, to form
Greenwich Marine Electronics, better
known today as GME. It was at this time
they began to venture into the
communications industry as a distributor
of 27 MHz marine radios. Later in the
decade they began their journey into the
27 MHz CB Market and began
manufacturing their own designs at the
beginning of the 80s.
Their first EPIRB was developed in
1979, just as the regulations changed
from the 2.182MHz frequency to the
newly adopted distress frequency of 121.
MHz. The initial model, the MT242,was far different from the products of
today but served its purpose well and
assisted in the saving of lives.
Over the years GME products have
evolved from the simplicity of the times
to become more advanced as the
company adapts to the ever-changing
demands and expectations of our
customers. GME’s emergency beacons are
now 406 MHz and have the added
options of GPS, automatic water-
activation and float free capabilities.
Its range of marine radios has also taken
on changes as they have become more
durable, have distress call options and
man overboard (MOB) functionality.
This innovation and drive have been
generated in Sydney’s west, where GME
operates from a modern, purpose-built
facility. This facility houses all aspects of
the business from manufacturing and
engineering capabilities to warehousing,
sales and marketing teams. GME
currently employs over 195 staff and
continues their on-going commitment to
Australian design and manufacturing. ●More info at GME.net.au