Prawn Industry Excursion for Room 23 Seniors

As part of their SACE Scientific Studies program, senior students from Room 23 were fortunate to learn about the prawn fishing industry yesterday via an exciting excursion. Students were welcomed by Spencer Gulf & West Coast Prawn Fishermen’s Association Executive Officer, Kelly Tape and Skipper/Coordinator at Sea, Ashley Lukin.

Both Kelly and Ashley presented a snapshot of the industry to our students, covering topics such as governance, compliance and fishing methodologies. The Room 23 crew had many questions which were answered in detail with pictures, diagrams and videos.

The highlight of the visit was a tour onboard Ashley’s prawn boat – the Lunar Sea – where students were able to see first-hand how a prawn vessel and fishing crew operate at sea. Ashley described in detail how the fishing gear worked, how the prawns were processed on board (including grading, cooking, packaging and freezing). He also gave our students a tour of his wheelhouse where he demonstrated how he uses technology to drive and navigate the boat, as well as find prawns to catch!

PLHS sincerely thanks Kelly Tape, Ashley Lukin and the Spencer Gulf & West Coast Prawn Fishermen’s Association for sharing their time and expertise. The opportunity for our Special Options class to make connections to key industry people and more importantly realise their potential to secure meaningful employment in our community.

~ Miss Beck Paterson (Senior Leader: Science & Mathematics)