Koi keeping: A (mostly) illegal hobby

WANT to install a water garden in your backyard and keep ornamental Japanese fish? Chances are, you’re not allowed.

Beautiful, goldfishy nishikigoi – better known as koi – are an outlawed species in every state except New South Wales and Western Australia. These long-standing state statutes effectively ban one of the most aesthetically pleasing home-and-garden hobbies from more than half of all Australians.

Actually a breed of carp from Japan, koi are typically categorised with their environmentally destructive cousins. In Australia imported European carp have been on most-wanted fish lists since as far back as the 1860s. They marginalise and generally muscle out the native species. Carp behaviour has even been known to provoke erosion by silting up water, reducing sunlight penetration and hence stunting the growth soil-stabilising plants.

Eddie Edwins is the president of the Koi Society of Australia based in New South Wales. He admits carp are an ecological menace but draws the line at domesticated koi.

“Carp is a pest. We know that and that’s why we try to educate people about it,” he said. “The European carp is in the waterways and it does cause a certain amount of problems. As they say, it’s the rabbit of the waterways and we know what rabbits do.

“Koi is easy enough to control. They don’t cause too many problems. Their hybrids are not as tough as the European carp.”

Rethinking the rules

Maybe the environmental risks are too great to go soft on the rules just for some hobbyists who want ornamental fish. But groups lobbying for amendment of these restrictions say government bans take a broad-brush stroke and fail to recognise important distinctions of the koi strain of carp.

Edwins says people in other states are keeping koi regardless of their legal status and that a change in the laws would actually improve the environmental situation.

“It’s backwards thinking,” he said. “When it’s legal you’ve got some sort of control. When it’s illegal you’ve got no control. When you think about it, [the Koi Society] can help when people want to get rid of their fish, but in the other states there’s no help for them.

“And people do keep koi in all states.”

Breaking the rules can mean hefty fines, especially where the habitat controls are most strict. If a carp is caught in Victoria, for example, it’s illegal to throw it back alive.

Nevertheless, koi keeping is undeniably popular and a potentially substantial industry is waiting in the wings across Australia. This pressure has led to some concentrated initiatives to revise the current laws.

The Australian Koi Association, the Koi Society of Australia and the Koi Society of Western Australia have pressed for a separate classification of koi and for a more self-regulatory approach to koi control within state borders. Progress, however, is slow.

“We hear rumours they might change in Victoria and South Australia, but it’s kind of hard to get any accurate information out of there,” Edwins said. “Every time there’s an election, it all changes again.”

Getting hooked

As for the residents of New South Wales and Western Australia, koi keeping can be an extremely rewarding diversion. Bred for their radiant colours, koi fish are perfect for brightening lily ponds when flowers are not in bloom.

They can be bought for as little as $2 each, thrive year round in almost any climate and can have a lifespan longer than almost any pet. Koi keepers hint that sometimes they can live as long as a person.

Edwins has been keeping koi for some 25 years and gave SuperLiving a few tips on how to get started.

“Most people make the mistake of not putting the filter on. I did that as well, we all do it,” he laughed. “Then you suddenly realise your water’s green and you can’t see your fish anymore. It’s important to have a filter and to have the electricity running 24 hours a day to keep oxygen up.

“If you only want a small backyard water feature, it’s easy enough to build them. You can either use liners, brick, concrete or fibreglass, any method as long as it’s non-toxic to the fish.”

Edwins recommends joining your area club for the advice, a better price on supplies and the camaraderie of fellow members from all walks of life. The true joy of koi, however, is not in the social circles, but in the tranquillity of the garden.

“I’m retired now but I know that when I was working, I could come home after work and sit by the pond for a half an hour,” Edwins said. “It gives you a chance to unwind. Especially after sitting in Sydney traffic.”