The NSW Government has released the draft Enhancing Recreational Fishing in NSW Action Plan 2026-2031, a five-year blueprint that promises 30 million stocked fish, 50 new fishing sites and a 10 percent jump in participation among women, kids and people with disabilities.
Minister for Agriculture and Regional NSW Tara Moriarty said the plan was framed around the contribution recreational fishing already makes to the state's economy and regional communities, and around the question of how to keep that pipeline alive into the next generation.
"Recreational fishing continues to make a significant contribution to the NSW economy, supporting over 14,000 full-time jobs and generating billions in economic activity annually across our regional and coastal communities," Moriarty said.
"This action plan demonstrates a strong commitment to both our inland waterway communities and our coastal communities. Our Government is ensuring the social, cultural and economic benefits of recreational fishing flow across the state and where they're needed."
The headline numbers are aimed squarely at access and species recovery. Hatchery infrastructure will be expanded to push 30 million fish into NSW waterways, with a focus on sportfish like Mulloway and Dusky Flathead alongside iconic natives like Murray Cod. Fifty new fishing sites are to be established across regional and metropolitan areas, with promised improvements to access, infrastructure and habitat.
The plan also targets a 10 percent boost in participation by under-represented groups. That includes more fishing workshops, accessible platforms and facilities, and an upgraded version of Gone Fishing Day designed to be 'a bigger and better event across NSW' through deeper partnerships with regional and coastal communities.
In parallel, the government has opened Expressions of Interest for the board of a new independent recreational fishing peak body. The board will be made up of a chair and up to nine members, drawn from dedicated recreational fishers, professionals and individuals with experience in leadership, communications and innovation.
"This peak body will work closely with the NSW Government to recommend the best ways forward to sustainably manage recreational fishing and broaden its participation," Moriarty said.
For an industry that has spent the past 18 months grappling with bass spawning closures, illegal foreign fishing incursions in the north and a quietly growing youth-led participation lift, the plan reads as a long-overdue framework. The combination of stocked fish, new sites and a formal peak body would, if delivered, give NSW a coherent recreational fishing strategy that the state has lacked at this scale before.
The public consultation window for the draft has now closed and final settings are expected to be released later in 2026, alongside the appointment of the inaugural peak body board. With the plan's success ultimately resting on hatchery output, capital works and a workable funding model for new fishing sites, the next 12 months will reveal whether the targets translate into more rods on the water or remain another well-meaning policy paper.
For now, NSW recreational anglers have the most ambitious set of state-government promises on participation, stocking and access in years, and a peak body that, for the first time, is meant to hold the government to them.