Allens has worked with its pro bono partner, WWF-Australia, to purchase and retire the last full-time commercial fishing gill net on the northern Great Barrier Reef bringing to an end commercial net fishing in the Princess Charlotte Bay region north of Cairns.
Princess Charlotte Bay is part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and is the habitat of the dugong and other threatened species.
Both the Federal and Queensland governments have put in place special permissions and fishing businesses have only been able to fish with nets in the area if they hold an historical commercial licence. The last commercial fishing licence has just been sold to WWF in a commercial transaction that secures Princess Charlotte Bay as a completely net fishing free region.
'Nearly three thousand people chipped in to raise the six-figure sum needed to purchase the commercial fishing licence which will now be retired, along with the 600-metre long gill net,' said Dermot O'Gorman, CEO of WWF-Australia.
'It's a great deal for dugongs, so we want to say thank you Allens for pro-bono legal support on an unusual and novel transaction'.
'Collaborating with WWF-Australia to find a creative solution to a complex problem was very rewarding for the Allens team,' said Partner Felicity Rourke.
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Notes for editors.
Allens is a commercial law firm working throughout Australia and Asia. Through its integrated alliance with Linklaters it provides clients access to 40 offices in 28 countries around the world.