Minister announces new measures to protect dolphins
29 May 2008
Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton today announced a package of measures to protect New Zealand’s threatened Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins.
The fishing measures include a mix of regional bans and other restrictions on set netting, trawling and drift netting in the coastal waters where the dolphins are most often found, as well as a significant increase in monitoring.
These measures sit alongside marine mammal sanctuary measures announced by Acting Conservation Minister David Parker today. Read more at DOC Website
The Minister’s decision letter and the final advice the Minister considered before making decisions, is available here.
The new measures are specific to particular areas. In summary, they are:
North Island west coast - from Maunganui Bluff north of Kaipara Harbour to Pariokariwa Point north of New Plymouth (refer to map):
- extend commercial and recreational set netting bans from four nautical miles to seven nautical miles offshore
- ban commercial and recreational set netting:
- in the Kaipara Harbour entrance (west of a line that runs from Poutu Point to South Head)
- in the lower part of Port Waikato (refer to map)
- in the Raglan Harbour entrance (west of a line that runs north-west from Putoetoe Point)
- further into the Manukau Harbour than the existing set net ban (from Lawry Point south-east to channel marker no. 4, then south-west to a peninsula one kilometre south of Grahams Beach)
- extend trawling bans from one nautical mile to two nautical miles offshore from Maunganui Bluff to Pariokariwa Point, and to four nautical miles between Manukau Harbour and Port Waikato
- ban commercial and recreational drift netting in Port Waikato.
South Island south coast - from Slope Point in the Catlins to Sandhill Point east of Fiordland (refer to map):
- ban commercial and recreational set netting to four nautical miles offshore—except in harbours, estuaries and inlets
- ban commercial and recreational set netting in the whole of Te Waewae Bay
- within 2 nautical miles of shore restrict the type of trawl gear used to flatfish nets with defined low headline heights.
South Island east coast - from Cape Jackson in the Marlborough Sounds to Slope Point in the Catlins (refer to map):
- ban commercial and recreational set netting in most areas to four nautical miles offshore, with the following exceptions:
- commercial and recreational set netting banned to only one nautical mile offshore around the Kaikoura Canyon
- set netting still permitted in most harbours, estuaries, river mouths, lagoons and inlets except for the Avon-Heathcote Estuary, Lyttelton Harbour, Akaroa Harbour and Timaru Harbour
- set netting for flounder permitted between 1 April and 30 September in designated flounder areas around Banks Peninsula and Queen Charlotte Sound using defined nets (see maps)
- within two nautical miles of shore restrict the type of trawl gear used to flatfish nets with defined low headline heights.
South Island west coast - from Cape Farewell in the north to Awarua Point north of Fiordland (refer to map):
- ban recreational set netting to two nautical miles offshore
- ban commercial set netting to two nautical miles offshore between 1 December and 28 February.
Download the maps that accompany the Minister's decision letter
(Maps in Jpeg Format)
Map 1 North Island West Coast set net
High Resolution (1.3Mb) Low Resolution (191kb)
Map 2 North Island West Coast trawl
High Resolution (904kb) Low Resolution 131kb)
Map 3 North Island West Coast drift net
High Resolution (5.9Mb) Low Resolution (228kb)
Map 4 South Island South Coast set net
High Resolution (935kb) Low Resolution (144kb)
Map 5 South Island South Coast trawl
High Resolution (1.1Mb) Low Resolution (125kb)
Map 6 South Island East Coast set net
High Resolution (1.2Mb) Low Resolution (138kb)
Map 7 South Island East Coast trawl
High Resolution (866kb) Low Resolution (122kb)
Map 8 South Island West Coast trawl
High Resolution (677kb) Low Resolution (109kb)