Lake George is a large lake situated just north of Beachport in the lower south east of South Australia which is one of many coastal lakes that exist along this section of coastline. In the early 1900s a channel was cut from the lake to the sea to allow water to drain off into the sea. Over time it was discovered that sea fish , mainly mullet and salmon traversed through this channel into the lake and breed up into large numbers due mainly to the type of weed and food that was unique to this lake. Between the 1950s - 1970s it became a very popular fishing area, fishing the channel using fishing rods but the only way to catch fish in the lake was by the use of nets with a 70mm mesh size that was ideal to catching the larger adult fish and allowing the smaller younger fish to swim through the net thus making the lake a sustainable fishery.
The government and fisheries at the time introduced a net licensing system that individual people could apply for netting Lake George only with the use of two 75 metre long nets with a 70mm mesh size, appropriately marked buoys and licence number. Also, three professional licences where issued to operate within the lake using considerably longer nets but with the same 70mm size mesh. This system of fishing worked very well until the mid 1990s when large numbers of fish died during summer due to low water levels, low oxygen levels within the water plus increase in water temperature. The main cause of the low water levels was less rainfall over the years plus less water flowing into the lake from the drainage system. Because of the large number of fish dying, PIRSA seemed necessary to close Lake George to both recreational and professional fishing. As the years went by the lake remained closed for fishing which resulted in the government buying back the professional licences and causing many recreational to let their licence lapse.
Over the next few years the Lake George Management Committee were busy on working to return the lake back to its normal water levels, drains have be dug to run water into the lake, arrangements put in place to run water from drain "M" into the lake and the outlet channel cleaned annually to allow clear flow of sea water back into the lake.
Since the early 2000s, the water level within Lake George has returned to normal and in conjunction with the S.A. Recreational Fishers Association and S.A.R.D.I., have conducted fishing trials annually to access fish stock numbers, with each year showing an increase number in catch rates. The last few years the fish catch rates have returned back to normal and PIRSA had no alternative but to open the lake back to net fishing but only for those recreational people who had continued to renew their licence each year even though the fishery remain closed.
The S.A. Recreational Fishers Association and the Lake George Committee are working with the South Australian Government and PIRSA in obtained additional licences for recreational people otherwise by natural attrition in the future there will be no licenced people left, but PIRSA don't support netting and say that Rec Fish S.A. don't support netting.
Lake George is an exception to this rule, as this is the only way of fishing this lake and the S.A. Recreational Fishers Association and Lake George Management Committee feel sure that once all party's agree on this issue a sustainable fishing licence system can be worked out to obtain additional licences for more recreational people to fish the lake in the future.
01/03/2015 Lake George Update
Lake George water levels are going back quite quickly now and we can start to see the problems with the channel not being open, so there have been no seawater inflows and very minimal fresh water inflows for the past 3 years and consequently no new fish recruitment. We really have to ask why our government departments are slowly trying to kill off this magnificent community asset.
On a brighter note there does seem to be some positive news on the Recreational Net Registrations with positive ongoing discussions with PIRSA and the joint working party. We are hopeful that it will be resolved in time for new registrations to commence by the first of July 2015.
There has been some work recently with some of the tracks on the Robe side trimmed back and two high water level signs erected, which really highlights how low the levels are. We are asking people who care about the lake to contact a local politicians, Drainage Board or the NRM board that LAKE GEORGE is just as important as anywhere else in this state please feel free to do so.
Fishing in the lake is good with some fairly healthy catches of mullet being reported plus also a few Flounder. have been caught .
