Seabird Safe Awards 2007

South East Resources Ltd, Timaru

SAVING SEABIRDS: South East Resources owner Murray Williamson and Dong Nam vessel charter representative Yong-Ho Huh accept an award for saving seabirds.

South East Resources Limited received the award for his forward-looking work in developing offal mincers, and commitment to ensure mincers were placed on all SERL trawl vessels.

“We now have two mincers on our three foreign charter vessels – each one to date, through repairs and maintenance, costing $100,000.” says Owner Murray Williamson.

“The mincers reduce the offal to less than 1cm. It then goes through the ship’s cutter pump and goes out with the normal factory water as a liquid. No offal goes over the side, even minced, when we are shooting, hauling or turning. There is nothing for the large seabirds to feed on, so they stay behind the nets.”

Williamson says the mincing presents no vessel stability problems and is safe for the crew working in a confined space below the water line. He says reducing offal to slurry, combined with tori lines, bird bafflers and a vessel management plan has proved successful in mitigating bycatch of seabirds.

He encourages fishermen and companies to enter the Seabird Safe Awards or nominate others who are going the extra mile to reduce seabird bycatch.

“I think this award is a great idea - so many people don’t realise that fishermen love seabirds. It was a great honour to win, especially as a foreign charter as we don’t usually get much kudos from the general public.”