The southern bluefin tuna industry is hoping to win a 25 per cent increase in its quota this year, a move which would return it to the catch it was permitted in 2009.

The body charged with making the decision, the Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna, is meeting in Sydney today.

The commission is made up of delegates from Australia, Japan, Korea, New Zealand and Taiwan.

In 2009 it cut Australia's quota by a quarter, or about 4,000 tonnes, because tuna stocks were believed to be dangerously low.

But now the tuna industry says it has the science to back the case to raise the quota.

But animal protection advocates argue it is too soon to lift the quota, saying southern bluefin remain highly endangered.

Humane Society International senior program manager Alexia Wellbelove says southern bluefin tuna are extremely valuable, so the fishing industry may be seeking short-term profits over long-term sustainability.

"What we need to have done in the coming days and months is get some serious talk going to make sure that does not happen [quota being raised], that the fish are allowed to recover and the quota is set at a level that will allow that," she said.

The Humane Society would prefer there was no fishing of the tuna, but if it is to be commercially fished, it wants it managed carefully, with lower quotas to allow the stock to recover.

"There's not only the conservation of southern bluefin tuna at stake. There's also the conservation of albatross and other sea birds, who drown in their thousands on the hooks of the long-line fisheries in this fishery, as well as sharks and turtles also being casualties of the fishery," she said.

"So there's a lot of issues at stake and we're hopeful of a good outcome."

Australian Tuna Association chief executive Brian Jeffriess says the fishing industry is only looking to recover the 25 per cent drop in quota it lost in 2009.

He says a final scientific report will show the quota increase is sustainable.

"What it says is that you can set the quota much, much higher than we're asking for," Mr Jeffriess said.

"All we're asking for is the quota that we lost in 2009 when the quota was cut."

But Ms Wellbelove says although there is an indication the number of one-year-old southern bluefin tuna is increasing, that does not mean the species can sustain a higher quota.

"What you have to understand is that these fish don't breed until between eight and 15 years old," she said.

"So it takes a number of years for these fish to reach maturity and we don't know how many, at this stage, of the one-year-olds will reach that level.

"So we think it's a little early to say that the quota should be increased."

Mr Jeffriess says it is not that simple.

"We're not just talking about a one-year recovery and the number of small fish, we're talking about this has now been going on since 2005," he said.

Mr Jeffriess says the drop in quota killed off 1,000 jobs in regional Australia, particularly around Port Lincoln in South Australia, so a return to the higher quota would be a big job creator.

The commission will not make a final decision on numbers until it meets again in October.