There are three prawn fisheries within South Australia:
The Prawn Association manages the Spencer Gulf and West Coast Prawn Fisheries. There are currently 39 commercial prawn fishing licences issued for the Spencer Gulf Prawn Fishery and 3 commercial prawn fishing licences issued for the West Coast Prawn Fishery. It is these licence holders that the Prawn Association represents when conducting its business.
The Association employs three staff to carry out operations, manage projects and deal with day-to-day activities. Two of the three positions conduct all of the management and administration functions, whilst the other position focuses on the operational side of the business (fishing). The work undertaken by staff is directed by the Management Committee.
The Management Committee is comprised of nine members as provided for in the Prawn Associations Constitution: an independent chairperson; deputy chairperson; five licence holders (or their nominees) of the Spencer Gulf Prawn Fishery; one licence holder (or their nominee) from the West Coast Prawn Fishery; and a skipper member representative. Management Committee members hold voluntary positions.
The Constitution also provides for the establishment of Sub-Committees by the Management Committee as required.
At least one Management Committee member must sit on a Sub-Committee. These positions are also voluntary, and can require more time and commitment from members than that of Management Committee members.
Sub-Committees that have been established include:
The Prawn Association operates under Co-management arrangements with the government to manage the prawn fisheries. This arrangement has evolved over time, through the Prawn Association demonstrating its commitment to the environment, credibility and good governance practices.
The Prawn Association has developed a number of gentlemens agreements to prevent fishing in waters to be protected, and policies and agreements for the safe and good conduct of fishers.
The Skippers Code of Practice is a significant working tool that the prawn industry uses specifically developed for the safety of fishers (ie stop fishing in bad weather) as well as quality enhancement of the product.
Additionally, the Prawn Association works with other commercial fishers to ensure practices within the fishing industry is safe and done in a respectful manner.