Departmental Output Expense – Fisheries Information
Scope of appropriation
Services to provide for scientific research (primarily stock assessment and environmental assessment) about New Zealand’s fisheries resources, and observer activities on commercial fishing activities.
Description of activities
This departmental output expense covers research that is largely science-based (primarily stock assessments and environmental assessments), and other activities relating to gathering and analysing data about New Zealand’s fisheries to support decisions about sustainable utilisation, as well as the provision of information on the biodiversity of New Zealand’s marine environment. Research costs represent existing projects that have been consulted on.
Fisheries science
As an input into current and future fisheries management decisions, fisheries research needs are identified, projects undertaken and results reported to provide scientific information on:
- estimates of biomass and sustainable yields for fish stocks
- effects of fishing on the aquatic environment, including biodiversity and bycatch species
- relevant social, cultural, and economic factors that may be included in the management decision process
- non-commercial harvest levels.
Research projects are classified into two categories in order to more fully utilise the research appropriation. Tier 1 projects are those that can be accommodated within the approved funding levels. Tier 2 projects will only be undertaken where Tier 1 projects are withdrawn/cancelled, and after consultation on the cost recovery levies. Recovery of costs through levies will only be applied to those projects that are actually undertaken.
The Ministry has a number of research programmes in place to generate information to support the New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy and the environmental principles set out in the Fisheries Act 1996. These programmes aim to improve our ability to:
- protect the richness and health of the marine biodiversity of New Zealand and the Ross Sea region
- ascertain the role of different organisms and habitats in maintaining the health and sustainability of our aquatic environment
- contribute to required information to set environmental standards.
| Expected achievement |
|
Actual results |
Medium-term research plans updated for all fisheries groups, the aquatic environment, and biodiversity, in accordance with specified quality standards, in appropriate timeframes to inform research and management activities for which they are required. |
100% |
Completed on time and to standard. |
Number of plans involved |
12 |
12 plans completed. |
Research projects developed for fisheries and the aquatic environment for 2009/10 and incorporated into the draft annual Fisheries Research Services plan in accordance with specified quality standards. |
Plan accepted by Minister |
Completed on time and to standard. |
Planned and requested reviews of stock status completed and incorporated into the mid-year and main Fishery Assessment Plenary in accordance with specified quality standards. |
100% |
The mid-year plenary was completed by 30 November 2008. The main plenary was completed by 31 May 2009. Both were on time and to standard. |
Research programme funding managed:
- percentage of programme completed during the year (including prior year carry forward funding)
- carry forward for future commitments.
|
>98%
<$3 million |
The final 2008/09 budget was $26.4 m. Final expenditure was $22.96m.
The amount carried forward to 2009/10 is $3.07m (but this includes $360,000 for East Coast Foreshore and Seabed which was awarded late in the financial year).
|
Tier 1 research projects tendered, evaluated, and contracts awarded. |
100% |
95% achieved. 125 projects were awarded during the financial year. There are seven projects still to be awarded. These have been delayed for various reasons – awaiting results from other projects that may have an influence on how to proceed, agreeing on methodological issues, and industry cost-recovery consultations. |
Completed projects for which objectives were fully achieved. |
>95% |
Achieved: 66 projects were completed; two projects were terminated prior to having all objectives completed. |
Final research reports submitted by research providers for which review and quality assurance is provided in a timely fashion. |
>90% |
Achieved. |
Number of the external reviews of research programmes, stock assessment models or survey methodology completed, and recommendations accepted and or implemented. |
3 |
Target exceeded. Nine reviews completed:
- Review of estimates of Chatham Rise orange roughy biomass from plume surveys
- Review of eel biology, management and research
- Snapper assessment technical review
- Review of environmental effects of Foveaux Strait oyster fishery
- Review of Customary research proposals
- Ecological risk assessment review
- Antarctic impacts of bottom fishing review
- Seabird risk assessment review
- Blue cod potting survey review.
|
Observers
Observers provide an independent source of high quality scientific and other information from commercial fishing operations. This information is a valuable input into the management of New Zealand’s fisheries resources, particularly the setting of sustainability levels and the monitoring of the environmental impact of fishing activities. Observers are also used by external agencies (for example the Department of Conservation), to gather the specific fisheries related information required to meet their organisational obligations.
There is a significant differential in the respective costs of delivering inshore coverage days for the Department of Conservation (DOC) and delivering other coverage days. This is primarily due to a greater relative number of shore days (ie down time) required to achieve inshore coverage days. This reflects a number of factors including the shorter duration of inshore trips, the greater impact of weather on inshore fishing activity, the inherently greater variability in inshore fleet activity and difficulties experienced in obtaining Observer placements in some fisheries.
| Expected achievement |
|
Actual results |
Average daily cost for Observer coverage provided to DOC for inshore fisheries |
$825 +/- 10% |
Target achieved, full year average daily cost was $818 (-1%). |
Average daily cost for Observer coverage for other fisheries. |
$555 +/- 10% |
Target not achieved. The full year average daily cost was $645 (+16%).
This cost measure relates to the cost of coverage in fisheries in which Observer coverage is a requirement of the fishing permit (eg CCAMLR) or is requested by the vessel operator (eg to update Vessel Specific Conversion Factors). 2008/09 was the first year in which Observer coverage was a permit requirement for bottom trawlers operating in the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation area. Fishing trips in the SPRFMO area, which represented 18% of permit and industry-requested coverage in 2008/09, were of shorter duration than expected which increased the cost of coverage. More frequent shorter duration trips result in greater onshore costs and observer shore time between coverage trips. |
Weighted average cost for Observer coverage. |
$598 +/- 10% |
Target not achieved, full year weighted average daily cost was $690 (+15%).
This measure is the cost of total coverage across all fisheries. With the exception of permit-required and industry-requested coverage (see comment above) the cost of coverage in all other fishery sectors was within target. |
Total number of Observer coverage days delivered. |
8,985 +/- 10% |
Not achieved, full year result was 7,491 days (-17%).
Levied coverage (ie coverage requested under research projects and subsequently cost-recovered through levy orders) was 6,440 days against a plan of 7,486 days (-14%).
Rather than unnecessarily duplicate inshore coverage, the coverage plan to support the Hector’s and Maui’s dolphin new initiative and other inshore coverage, primarily for DOC, was rationalised. This resulted in fewer inshore coverage days being required to meet research and monitoring objectives and a resultant reduction in cost to the levy payers.
Coverage required by permits or requested by the industry was 1,051 days versus a plan of 1,499 days. Coverage is purely a function of fishing activity and industry requests. |
Observer coverage increase in each of the next three years by |
2,000 days per year |
1,156 days of the proposed increased coverage were utilised for the Hector’s and Maui’s dolphin coverage and SPRFMO coverage outside the NZ EEZ. The full 2,000 additional days were not required to meet information needs and coverage requirements. |
Number of Ministry-required days delivered. |
5,686 +/- 10% |
Target achieved. Full year coverage was 5,307 days against a plan of 5,686 days (-7%). |
Number of Observer coverage days applied to requests from the Department of Conservation to support the Conservation Services Plan. |
1,475 +/- 10% |
Target not achieved, full year coverage was 1,133 days (-23%). The shortfall reflects rationalisation of MFish aquatic environment and DOC inshore coverage with the Hector’s and Maui’s dolphin coverage. Much of DOC’s information needs were able to be met through the Hector’s and Maui’s dolphin coverage. |
Observer coverage of:
- bottom trawl fisheries in the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Area
- New Zealand vessels operating in CCAMLR areas.
|
100%
100%
|
Observers were available, and placed, on all New Zealand vessels bottom trawling fisheries in the South Pacific Regional Management
Organisation area. Coverage was 193 days.
Observer services met all requests for coverage on New Zealand vessels bottom lining in CCAMLR waters. Coverage was 573 days. |