The Northern Territory Seafood Council (NTSC) of Australia has reported the recent passing of William "Bill" Passey, a long-time fishing boat captain as well as co-founder and Director of Australia Bay Seafoods.
"Bill's life in seafood began early," NTSC said in a statement. "Leaving home the day before his 14th birthday, he began working in a lobster processing factory at Cervantes on the Western Australian coast, before finding work as relief crew on lobster boats. By 18, through hard work and determination, he had saved enough to purchase his first licensed lobster boat and begin the season debt-free.
After 22 years, he bought a large wooden vessel and with his teenage son Raymond and daughter Lorna, they sailed north, "to see what they could find, ending up in Darwin after 12 months, where they started drop-lining in the Timor Box," according to Seafood Industry Australia (SIA).
Eight years after that, Passey partnered with Gary Kessell to establish Australia Bay Seafoods.
The NTSC said that, through Australia Bay Seafoods, Passey, "helped... develop the market for tropical snapper caught in northern waters."
One of his notable achievements is the invention of a bycatch reduction device for fish trawling. SIA said this device reduced bycatch of stingrays and sharks by about 98 per cent.
"Bill was a valued contributor to the Northern Territory Seafood Council and the wider commercial fishing community," the NTSC said. "His contribution was made over decades, through fishing and investment, the knowledge he shared, the innovations he pursued and his unwavering belief in the future of commercial fishing in northern Australia."