Implications of adding an extra annual 170 MT interim relief catch for the output of the west coast rock lobster OMP 2007 re-cast

Introduction The current OMP used to set TACs for the West Coast Rock Lobster resource is called “OMP 2007 re-cast”. Results from stochastic simulations predict that this OMP is expected to produce (in median terms) a total exploitable biomass increase of 20% by 2016 compared with that at the start of 2006. This amounts to no more than restoring the biomass to its level in 1996 when OMP-based management commenced. The 10-year average annual commercial TAC is predicted to be 2312 MT. “OMP 2007 re-cast” does not take any interim relief catches into account. The full set of stochastic results for “OMP 2007 re-cast” was reported in Johnston and Butterworth (2008) and is reproduced here in Table 1