Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Thank you for providing this accurate information Gordon. I'm sure it will help our WA members.

Tilapia is considered a excellent eating fish - just because they are easy to grow doesn't mean they are bad.

Thanks Gordon .. this is important.

Good on you gordon
its good to see Authorities keeping the people informed and up to date with current information

however thats the funniest rules ive ever heard

basically says i can buy a silver perch from the petstore and then farm it
but if i buy from someone selling the same fish imported from the same Eastern (or even northern , or from esperance) hatchery then id have to fill out paperwork and wait 6-8 weeks. Cost or no cost its a ridiculous legal instrument, that people will simply avoid.

me thinks you should write to your superiors and tell them that reality has changed while they were asleep!
well obviously you wont say it like that, which is why youre the one with the job and im not lol. But they at least need to know it makes them look silly



so this guy doesnt eat mussels, prawns, oysters, abalone, yabbies or marron
i take it
given the prejudice against fish that eat crap and Algae!

im keen to try tilapia - to eat
i remember keeping them years ago in WA. Given by an old lady with a tank in her backyard.
O mossambicus, stock caught out of the Chapman river near Geraldton

Unfortunaetly Qld still has some ridiculous laws of its own.
where a naturalised fish, if put in a container.
can apparently cost you up to $75 000!
i get that they dont want it spread, but those laws are simply unreasonably harsh and unconstitutionally punitive.
Now tilapia are here they will spread, even without human aid, through closely connected rivers and estuaries
because birds will move them (given ability of eggs to survive out of water so long)
and because they tolerate high salinities and would in times of flood events make the jump themselves within discrete geographical zones.
People already keep and eat them. And all silly laws do is make criminals of people doing a reasonable thing.

The ones ive seen here in Qld. look similar.
problem is ive never seen any ones that are a decent size
15cm max.

anyway i will be taking one home to eat if i can nab one, and if fisheries want 75K , i hope they take it in fishscales.

The rational JuiceMonkey is that any non-endemic fish brought from a local supplier would have been done so with the appropriate licencing and more particularly from approved health inspected stock/suppliers and be disease free... or would have been quarantined..

It's as much about disease control as anything else...



No JuiceMonkey... it's because they're a non-endemic fish species... and more particularly are listed as a noxious and pest species...

The fact that they may have been illegally released and survived within a system... doesn't mean that they've become naturalised... it just means that they were inherently capable of survival and reproduction within that river system... which in itself justifies the concerns...

They didn't undergo any magical transformation...



You really need to do some research JuiceMonkey... birds are extremely unlikely to spread Tilapia fry.... one they'd probably just eat any fry... and two, most birds aren't capable of diving and retreiving fish eggs... particularly Tilapia eggs...

Which are held by the female in her mouth... Tilapia are mouth brooders... they hold the eggs/fry in their mouths....



And nearly all species on the current "noxious" list are soon to be placed on the banned register... and that includes most cichilids and many other aquaria species...



And I hope they do catch you... and I'd quite happily dob you in given the opportunity...

You need a serious reality check... IMHO...

And as pointed out before such "attitudes" are exactly what isn't needed here on the forum, either by the forum owners or general aquaponic system owners...

Because it's exactly the sort of attitude that leads to formation of the "silly" laws that you rail against... and which could seriously restrict peoples ability to stock fish in backyard aquaponic systems...

Because of people with attitudes like yours mate...

Juice Monkey ,, I love Tilapia , I love the taste I love the growth rate and it's ease of care ,, i grow many many Tonnes of Tilapia IN THAILAND , because it is legal to do so there. I wanted to grow red-claw in Thailand , i spend many HUNDREDS of hours studying about them ,, but it is now ILLEGAL to grow red-claw in thailand so I DON'T do it.

Rules are normally in place for a good reason ..... the reasons just seems silly to unreasonable people.

If you don't like the rules ,, either get them changed or take one of the many international one-way flights available from a number of Australian airports.

thats not what i read rupert
what i read is that the same fish has 2 separate rule depending on why its being bought
you should read it too
her ya go
Moving tilapia into or within the state for ornamental purposes does not require translocation approval as they are not listed as a noxious or restricted species in WA (see link below). However, the translocation of non-endemic species, such as tilapia, for non-commercial aquaculture or aquaponics does require translocation approval under Regulation 176 of the Fish Resources Management Act 1994.
now youve read it again ist that worthy of ridicule?



if thats not naturalisation then what the hell is??
please inform me

as for the intent of the rules. Thats not how law works.
the law is meant to be what it says it is. Its meant to be quite a literal expression of the words used to create it, as understood in its regular sense.
so forget rationale.
the law is a broken tool. make it say what it means to say and not something else.



roll eyes at yourself bro
im not making groundless complaints, ive done my homework. You should do yours.
I know they are mouth brooders, ive kept them in WA in tanks at an aquaculture facility
BUt biology has a habit of having backup systems.
DPI fisheries officer Wade micke is quoted in the Cape York Peninsular Development Association Inc. Bulletin
"Female tilapia may carry eggs in their mouth, and these eggs can survive long after the adult fish is dead"
Jan/Mar 2008
also anecdotal comments
http://sweetwaterfishing.com.au/tilapia.htm
Birds move fish and other aquatics. its a well known phenomenon.
lets start with Darwin
http://oll.libertyfund.org/?option=com_ ... &Itemid=27
https://kb.osu.edu/dspace/bitstream/181 ... N1_046.pdf
http://www.jstor.org/pss/1467140
http://pubs.aina.ucalgary.ca/arctic/Arctic60-2-124.pdf
http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-B ... dy-d1.html
if you want more on natural dispersal then just start googling..
id agree most if not all distribution so far is from humans. But it wont always be
What birds dont do, floods will, or movement between estuaries in flooding events that dilute coastal waters in great plumes.



thats rubbish too.
a limited number of species are being banned, to bring qld into line with the national laws
for your reference
http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/cps/rde/dpi/h ... A_HTML.htm
http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/cps/rde/dpi/h ... A_HTML.htm

ive only ever seen one of those species. 2 alligator Gars, in a petshop in WA.
Almost all species clearly belong there. they are mostly large predators, some dangerous even to humans.
I think their approach is smart. allow people to keep them for the term of their lives so long as they are registered, which is free. Thats fair.
To some extent that will quell what would have been an otherwise Blackmarket.



shows what a sheep you are then.
you'd dob me in for taking a fish home to eat
good on ya mate.
well news for you. you can take a fish home in a few ways without putting it 'in a container'




i disagree
I say we have laws like we have because of people like you.
When you see a repugnant law, and you accept it.

you accept that the state can fine people 75000 for keeping a fish to eat
when the damn thing is naturalised in the whole catchment already, and no amount of fining or poisoning or anything like that will ever get rid of it. They know this because they say it themselves on their own website.
http://www2.dpi.qld.gov.au/fishweb/1347.html#2
Why can WA seem to rationalise this, but qld cant?
In all states and territories its illegal to translocate noxious fish, but only in qld can people be fined ridiculous sums for keeping and eating fish. SA has a great carp fishing industry, for fertiliser and for the asian markets. What makes Qld so special?
Laws like this do nothing to stop or slow the spread of these fish, all they do is hurt people.
I get angry at government that hurt people because its not what they were created to do.

dont forget that in our system the government exists to serve us, the people, not the other way around. They are accountable to the crown, and the people and the crown have a negotiated agreement.
Its our civil duty to rail against repugnant and ridiculous laws.
most people dont know this, and the govt chooses to ignore it, but thats the way the law still stands in letter.

you trust the government?
These are the same arseholes who want to dam one of the last global strongholds of the Aussie lungfish.
They are idiots.

to Chappo

Im not leaving my country. Its MY country.
and all this has nothing to do with RAISING fish
Its to do with a stupid clause that allegedly stops me from keeping my wild catch to eat.
and FYI i DO intend writing to the minister about it once i have a very clear understanding of the related laws and that of the commonwealth and other states.

So I can keep Tilapia in my "ornamental" pond ( which is filtered by growbeds ) and I don't need a permit even though theyre noxious in the rest of the country , as long as I don't put them in there to eat ? woohooo

I'll regularly decide that I don't need the biggest ones and "dispose of them humanely" in the freezer , which is right next to the bbq and fish smoker

That law is kinda like saying Im allowed to import as much beer as I want without paying tax , as long as I dont intend to drink it

While Im at it I may aswell order some "ornamental" Jade Perch , as the paperwork I twice requested for translocation never arrived

I suspect that with the new rule changes that it will become illegal to have a live Tilapia in your possesion. It will most likely become illegal not to kill a Tilapia you catch from a natural river or stream. The MUST KILL rule is already in place re Carp.

Chappo i mustve missed that bit you are referring to??

what new rules?

all i can see in front of me is that you must destroy any sick non-endemic fish, unless you have a letter saying you dont have to.

o/wise Boris has it in a nutshell
and highlights my ridicule of the state of the WA translocation laws as they stand

all its doing is promoting the spread of disease, as its easier to buy ornamental fish from some old mates backyard op
than it is to get a healthchecked consignment from a hatchery

also AFAIK carp are still fine in WA
after all you can still buy and sell and breed Koi

http://www.fish.wa.gov.au/docs/pub/IMPF ... 3.php?0506

The rules are already in place for Carp ... found the ones for Victoria ,, is same in NSW and QLD and NT I believe ,, don't know about WA or Sa ,, but either way reg's are being changed to keep rules fairly consistant across the states ,,

"Regulations
Carp is declared a noxious aquatic species in Victoria, which makes it an offence to possess, transport or release live carp, or use live carp (including all forms of carp and goldfish) as fishing bait.

QLD ..... This fish is declared noxious in Queensland. It is unlawful to possess noxious fish alive or dead or to use them as bait. It is illegal to place or release noxious fish alive or dead into Queensland waterways. Penalties of up to $200,000 apply.

Some of the up-dates I was referring to .....,http://www.abc.net.au/rural/qld/content/2009/06/s2607217.htm

What I replied to was your response ...



And my post was directed to this, and the rationale behind locally sourced/bred fish stock that had previously been approved/quarantined.... as opposed to directly importing inter-state... not to another passage of the regulations that you have now decided to post...

As to the passage you quote..


It is indeed ridiculous and unique to WA... and nobody understands why Tilapia is treated differently by WA than in all other states...although I can understand the justifications that might have been given by aquariists in relation to the keeping of cichilids in general, of which Tilpia is a member... and how it might have occurred..

Forthcoming changes to the National Noxious Fish list will address this anomoly and bring WA into line with the rest of the states.... and make many species listed as "noxious"..



Sorry, but you're wrong... and DPI NSW announced their intentions today... in line with the national proposed changes to legislation...
http://209.85.62.24/333/111/0/p178691/I ... try_2_.pdf

I'm sure each state will endeavour to insert it's own anomolies into their own state laws...


They're not... on some specific instances perhaps... and as in the case of Tilpia in WA.. each state has some perculiar and anomolous laws...

But on this one most states are consistant... case in point is that most southern states treat Redfin... a declared noxious species... the exact same way as QLD treats Tilpia... you're supposed to kill them on the spot... and report it..





No, not necessarily... government members can at times be just as ignorant and mis-informed as evryday members of the public... and do things that either ultimately are proven to be mistakes... or assume a position based on personal belief or misguided stubboness...

It is up to us to inform them ifwe consider them uninformed or misguided and to hold them accountable for their decisions.



It isn't about denying you a right to eat your wildcatch fish... it's about translocating a species of declared noxious fish which should be killed immediately at the location...


If you feel and conceed that damage may occur to other catchments by a bird transporting a female Tilapia, which just happens to be holding eggs in her mouth.... several tens/hundreds of kilometers and then dropping the fish and/or her eggs into another catchment... before actually eating the fish...

Then can't you surely see that a human being transporting that same fish, by car... tens/hundreds of kilometers in a bucket... then killing the fish to eat... and pouring the remains, particularly the water containing the eggs down a drain into a new catchment area... is surely more likely than a bloody bird dispersing eggs into a new system... and you conceed that

come on guys! just agree to dis agree.

lets just make the most of what our state will let us.

i just got a pair of tilapia and i intend to keep them weather the law changes or not its my buisness. we 'humans' do more damage to our invironments than some of these introduced fish species. like you said Roup poring fish water down a drain that leads to a catchment! just one of the reasons some of the rivers are in such a state.

even ppl who are suppose to enforce the law get it wrong for eg; some friends of mine where fishing in a southern dam catching lots of little redfin and doing what they were told and killing them when a local ranger turned up and saw all the ded redis and went balistic and became quite abusive for killing all these little fish!