DPIE partners with Aquna Sustainable Murray Cod in $200K restocking program

The company is partnering with the Department of Primary Industries and the Edward Wakool Angling Association to trial the stocking of advanced size fish into selected waterways.

The 12-month program which aims to investigate if targeted stocking of larger Murray Cod along with fingerlings produced by the fish hatchery at the Narrandera Fisheries Centre, can help fish populations recover faster from the effects of drought and floods.

Aquna Sustainable Murray Cod executive chairman Ross Anderson said he is excited to be a part of the project.

"The advanced size cod are produced at the Aquna facility near Griffith in outside ponds," Mr Anderson said.

"We have integrated fish rescued by DPI during the drought into our restocking breeding program.

"Murray Cod are now the most valuable land-based aquaculture sector in NSW. We're pleased to be a part of this exciting trial that may ultimately help recover and enhance native fish populations in the future."

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Five hundred tagged Murray Cod, measuring up to 40 centimetres, have already been released across five sites in the Edward-Wakool system in western NSW.

A total of 4,500 high-quality sub-adult Murray Cod will be released across other inland waterways across NSW during the trial.

"Following years of extreme events, a number of native fish species have been severely impacted," Minister for agriculture, Tara Moriarty said.

"We need to look at new ways to help populations recover and grow more rapidly.

"Recreational fishing continues to be one of the most popular pastimes.

"This project won't just keep our inland river systems healthy - it will also be a big win for the recreational fishing sector and communities in western NSW."

Recreational fishers can support the advanced-size fish stocking program by reporting the tag number of any fish they catch to DPI at fish.stocking@dpi.nsw.gov.au

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