The Greater Sydney Region covers a large area, stretching from Newcastle southwards to the Illawarra area. This area contains the three largest cities in NSW and a great number of the state’s recreational fishers. A series of concurrent on-site surveys are currently underway throughout the region. These surveys have been designed to provide site specific, baseline data on recreational fishing effort and catch within the region. On-site survey methods have been used because they provide validated information on: (a) patterns of fishing effort; (b) species composition of the harvest; and (c) size structure of fish populations targeted by recreational fishers within the region. The survey work started in March 2007 is scheduled to continue for a two year period. I will provide an overview of this project and discuss the utility of these survey data for assessing potential environmental and anthropogenic impacts.