Fishers on the NSW north coast are pleading for a lifeline as they face a "diabolical" challenge to their businesses.
White spot disease was identified at two prawn farms around Yamba in February.
White spot disease is a highly contagious viral infection that can wipe out large numbers of farmed prawns, but poses no threat to human health and safety.
A control order restricting the movement of raw prawns from the Clarence River area was imposed and will remain in effect until at least June 14.
Dean Opalniuk has fished the Clarence River for about 25 years and said green prawns made up around 90 per cent of his business.
"The impact has just been devastating," he said.
Mr Opalniuk said the discovery of white spot at local farms had been shocking, but routine testing by the DPI since then had found no trace of the disease in wild prawn populations along the river.
"There's plenty of prawns around and we're sitting back here, just looking at the river going, 'We could potentially be out there and making a really good living.'"
Mr Opalniuk joined a chorus of local fishers and politicians calling for a financial assistance package from the state and federal governments.
"People need money to feed their families and pay their bills," he said.
"We're not going to get that little boost before winter, so it's going to make it a really long, hard winter for all of us.
"It just gets you down mentally."
Little alternative
Fisher Glenn Dawson said he had lost about 70 per cent of his business since February and was now catching "eels and a few sharks", but he said the situation was "more than desperate".
The control order does not restrict the movement of cooked prawns but Mr Dawson said there were few prawns to be found following major flooding in recent years.
"That's the problem with this biosecurity order. We just haven't got those [larger] prawns here to cook, otherwise we could go to work," he said.
"Because they're only bait prawns, small prawns, we can't cook them so we can't go to work because we can't move them out of this area."
Calls for compensation
The NSW Nationals MP for Clarence, Richie Williamson, said it was a biosecurity issue that was having a humanitarian effect.
"The situation is diabolical," he said.
"We have families and businesses that are on their knees because of this closure of the prawning season on the Clarence River."
Mr Williamson said he hoped the NSW and federal governments could agree on a joint support package with "some urgency".
Government, businesses to meet
Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt previously told the ABC that financial compensation was primarily a state government responsibility.
He said he was open to providing shared support, but the NSW government needed to take the first steps.
In a statement, NSW Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty said work was being done to support the Clarence fishing industry.
"I have received an initial briefing from DPI on the current response to white spot disease, and the impacts on prawn farming and fishing businesses in the area," she said.
"I will be meeting with the local industry later this week to discuss issues with them directly.
"DPI is working with the coop, the associations, and the fishers to try to develop a pathway back to business for these fishers while removing the risk to the rest of the state from the spread of the virus."
