Every year, local farmers and community groups get the opportunity to publicly discuss farming issues affecting native fish.

Their main concern expressed during the recent Native Fish Awareness Week was lack of water, but also touched on feral fish and lack of riverbank vegetation.

During a tour of central NSW, the Murray-Darling Basin Commission’s (MDBC) native fish strategy team responded on issues facing native fish, including feral species.

Lack of habitat for native fish, proper restocking of fish according to their genetics and inability to migrate for breeding due to barriers such as weirs and dams were all important, research scientist at Narrandera Fisheries Centre, Dr Lee Baumgartner, said.

Scientists have warned that unless the Koorong wetlands in the lower Murray Darling systems gets water flows within six months, they will be irreversibly damaged and native fish species lost. The Federal government has sought urgent advice.

With 90 per cent of NSW waterways running though privately owned land, individual landholders have an enormous capacity to influence river health.

More than 97pc - 56,000 kilometres - of NSW rivers have been modified in some way.

The awareness week started in Narrandera and moved through Condobolin, Forbes, Dubbo, Macquarie Marshes, Narrabri and Tamworth.
At Narrandera, an electrofishing demonstration began the week’s activities.

"Electrofishing is the least stressful way we can collect fish for research," Dr Baumgartner said.

Electrofishing temporarily stuns fish with electric currents, so they can be scooped up when they float to the surface.

They’re put into a recovery tank for a few minutes, weighed, measured and tagged if necessary then released.

The team caught and released a 30 centimetre endangered trout cod, a large Murray cod and a few small ones, a golden perch and a silver perch.

A few feral species were also caught - mainly small European carp.

This year NSW Department of Primary Industries helped to host the tour, and community forums at Forbes, Dubbo and Tamworth.

The native fish strategy team also visited local farmers who have fenced off waterways from stock and helped to restore the waterways on their properties.

Contact the Murray-Darling Basin Commission website www.mdbc.gov.au/NFS and follow the links to the Native Fish Strategy.