Super-trawler docks in Port Lincoln

30 Aug 2012, 2:53 pm   -   Source: AAP

The 142-metre FV Margiris has docked in Australian waters for the first time, prompting Greenpeace to call for a ban on super-trawlers.

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A super-trawler has docked in Australian waters for the first time, prompting Greenpeace to again call for a federal government ban on the vessels.

The 142-metre FV Margiris sailed into South Australia's Port Lincoln on Thursday morning, after activists in a dinghy failed to intercept the ship.

"They tried to approach the boat and have a discussion with the captain, but they were repelled when the crew cut the ropes and the harbour pilot came between them and the boat," Greenpeace media officer Julie Macken said.

While hundreds of people in boats protested in Tasmania's Derwent River earlier this month, only a handful of locals, media representatives, police and security officers and Greenpeace activists were present as the Margiris sailed into Port Lincoln.

Seafish Tasmania intends to use the trawler to fish for 18,000 tonnes of red bait and mackerel but its opponents are concerned about the risks to dolphins and other marine life.

Ms Macken referred to the irony of dolphins frolicking in the harbour as the Margiris berthed.

Port Lincoln mayor Bruce Green said he was quite relaxed about the possibility of the super-trawler working in the area.

"When I first heard about it, I was alarmed ... and thought, 'Holy smoke, how big is this thing and what is it going to do?'" he said.

But he now had no concerns about its impact on local fishing because "it is a different species, it is a different tonnage and I have got confidence it will be well managed".

However, Ms Macken said "the marauding factory" should be stopped.

"It is a bit like smoking, we say it should not be started," she said.

Greenpeace's Pavel Klinckhamers said the ship left Amsterdam in early July and was docked at Port Lincoln so it could get an Australian flag and paperwork to work in local waters.

Port Lincoln fisherman Doug Dawson said while some locals were against the super-trawler, he and his colleagues thought it was good for the industry.

"They go in deep waters and are not catching the fish we catch," he said.

He believed it would not catch dolphins or tuna, saying it was "target fishing" in a well-regulated industry.

"And money will come back to Australia," he added.

Meanwhile federal government MP Melissa Parke announced on Thursday she will introduce a private member's bill when parliament next sits to protect the future of Australia's oceans and fisheries.

She said she had concerns about the impact of a super-trawler like the MV Margiris, and wanted to prevent its style of large-scale trawling in Australian waters.

This follows concerns expressed by at least seven Labor MPs in caucus last week, including Transport Minister Anthony Albanese.

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