Northland Non-Commercial Fishing Forum

Date: 23 June 2008

Time: 1600 – 2030

Venue: Ministry of Fisheries Whangarei Office

Present:

John Holdsworth, Des Subritzky, Paul Batten, John Torr, Doug McColl, John Chibnall, Hamish Faire, Geoff Stone, Ron Fenwick, Murray Bruges (MFish), Darren Edwards (MFish), Andrew McCulley (MFish).

Apologies:

John Taunton-Clark (MFish), Kaye van der Straten (MFish)

Summary of Discussion

Welcome and opening meeting

Murray opened the meeting by welcoming members and offering the option for a forum member to chair the meeting. Forum members noted they were happy for MFish to maintain the chair role, and for forum members to focus on the issues raised during forum meetings.

Matters arising from previous minutes

Grey Mullet

A planned grey mullet presentation was postponed until the next meeting as Kaye van der Straten was unable to attend due to illness.

Charter boat reporting

Murray updated the forum on the progress of the Ministry’s proposed changes to charter boat reporting requirements. Forum members discussed the charter boat reporting meeting held in the Bay of Islands (BOI).

The forum was concerned that charter boat reporting might not provide useful information to MFish. Forum members noted that charter boat operators will almost certainly view the reporting requirements as secondary to other requirements on a charter vessel (such as safety and maritime requirements).

The forum suggested that the reporting requirements should be kept simple as accurate, reliable data is unlikely to result from complicated reporting requirements.

Action: - Murray to distribute charter boat IPP to forum members when it is released.

The forum discussed MFish using fishing tournament data, but acknowledged that the information gathered during a fishing tournament varies significantly from year to year. Geoff suggested that to gather any meaningful, comparable data, then the same data needs to be collected in the same way. John H mentioned the charter logbook program as an example of a program which has been collecting tuna and marlin data record for many years

Bronze whalers

At the previous meeting, several forum members noted an increased abundance of bronze whaler sharks, with many reports of hooked kingfish being attacked and eaten before they could be landed. The forum asked MFish to look into bronze whaler abundance. Murray acknowledged that there is anecdotal evidence of an increase in bronze whalers on the East coast, although it is difficult to identify whether overall numbers are increasing, or whether some bronze whalers are changing their behaviour and spending more time in coastal waters.

The forum again agreed that there had been a notable increase in bronze whalers over the last couple of years.

Recreational Regulation Review

Concern was raised by the group at the level of catch from boats travelling up from Whakatane and fishing in the BoI.

The group discussed the need for the bluenose recreational bag limit to be reviewed. Geoff let the forum know that charter boats in the BoI support the need for action. John H questioned whether the recreational bag limit poses a sustainability threat to Bluenose stocks, and questioned whether there was an issue with recreational catch rates in the stock. John H was also concerned that any proposed changes would have an effect on the entire FMA whereas the issue is with only a few boats in a certain area. John H explained that a similar issue had been investigated in QMA 2 in response to concerns around blue nose and häpuku landings from the Ranfurly bank. In this case, options such as boat or accumulation limits had been considered. Murray agreed to update the forum on the outcome of this review at the next meeting.

John H requested that care be taken to ensure all forum members agree to submissions made on behalf of the forum. John noted that he felt it was unclear whether or not the forum agreed to forward recommendations for bluenose and grey mullet to the recreational review group.

Action: - MFish to provide update on the area 2 review.

Marine protected areas

The forum was given a brief update on the ongoing marine protected area (MPA) process, and the likelihood that work to develop MPAs in the North East Biogeographical Zone (the north eastern part of the North Island) would begin soon. John H informed the forum that Jeroen Jongejans, a dive operator based in Tutukaka is interested in developing a network of MPAs along the coast between Tutukaka and the Bay of Islands.

Geoff noted charter boat operators would support that the BoI be managed separately to protect important spawning area from high levels of fishing pressure.

Sustainability round

Murray gave a brief update on the upcoming sustainability round, explaining to the forum that recent legal issues (mostly concerning the Minister’s ability to set a TAC under s13) have meant that only two issues are being reviewed in the upcoming round, all bluenose stocks around NZ and ORH 3B. Murray gave a brief overview of bluenose stocks, explaining that past management for many stocks had been under an adaptive management program (AMP) that saw TACCs increased significantly. However, decreasing catch per unit effort indices in the commercial fishery have recently raised concerns about the current status of bluenose stocks. Murray also noted that the recreational allowance and bag limit was not being reviewed during the upcoming sustainability round.

Members’ updates

RF- Ron reported that fishing has been poor, although there has been lots of kahawai around and a few snapper north of awanui on both coasts. Ron raised concerns that commercial fishers were catching snapper from a local beach, in an area accessible to the public and recreational fishers. He also questioned why there is not a ban on snapper fishing during the spawning season. John H and Murray explained that spawning success was more related to environmental conditions than stock size, and that current science does not support closing the fishery during the spawning season.

JH- John noted he had not been out fishing much, but had caught a few kahawai and snapper off the rocks. John spoke of his interest in a marlin being tagged with a spear gun, as shown on a recent episode of the ITM fishing show. Progress updates of tagged fish should be on the ITM fishing show website http://www.thefishingshow.co.nz by the end of August. Hamish was interested to see if the marlin reacted to being tagged by heading offshore, something which has been observed with many line-caught tagged and released fish.

DS- Des reported that fishing had been OK, with some catches of snapper, gurnard and kahawai. He noted that the Kaipara had been patchy although there had been schools of mullet jumping. Flounder fishing has improved, due in part to a reduction in commercial flounder fishers, and also to the remaining fishers using larger net mesh sizes.

Des also raised his ongoing concern at the proposed Crest Energy hydro-power scheme and the potential impacts on both fisheries and the marine environment within the Kaipara harbour.

PB- Paul reported that bad weather had affected recent fishing events. April’s gurnard fishing event was unsuccessful with very few gurnard around. Paul raised concerns at a proposed housing development at Te Ari. The development of approximately 5000 sections does not include plans for a boat ramp, and Paul’s concern is that there will be a huge increase in traffic through the boat ramp at Mangawhai.

JT- Whangarei harbour has had patchy fishing, although there are some big snapper around. Tarakihi should be coming in, and along with snapper should be around the 60-70m mark. John raised a concern regarding a Whangarei District Council proposal to ban the use of boat toilets in the harbour. John also asked why the Waitangi boat ramp did not have a pontoon to tie boats to when launching.

DM- Doug noted lots of kahawai around the Doubtless bay area but that overall, fishing was slow. Doug updated the forum on a new dive attraction in the region, with the grounded fishing vessel ‘Seawyf’ being washed off a bar and sinking on Fairway reef.

JC- John had little fishing news to report but did answer John Torr’s question about the absence of a pontoon at Waitangi, noting that the Waitangi River floods regularly, and that any pontoon at the boat ramp would quickly be washed away.

HF- Hamish reported that fishing had not been too bad with a good number of kingfish and plenty of kahawai around. He noted lots of fish around but nothing particularly big, häpuka out deep (though not abundant) and ongoing issues with sharks in the area. He described marlin still being present, feeding on an abundance of food. He also stated that the recent weather has affected fishing.

GS- Agreed with Hamish’s fishing report for the BoI, and added that snapper fishing has been best close in with exceptional numbers of small snapper (25-27cm) in the deep water. He also described an abundance of John dory in the bay.

Maui’s dolphin decision

The forum was given a brief rundown of the Minister’s recent decision to increase protection measures for Maui’s dolphin. Maps were distributed to forum members illustrating changes to trawling and set net restrictions.

NIWA research

Murray briefly spoke about research looking at juvenile coastal fish and their nursery habitats recently completed by Mark Morrison from NIWA. The research identified the importance of the Kaipara harbour as a habitat for juvenile snapper ground for the west coast. The research also identified sea grass as being important areas which supported significantly higher juvenile abundance compared to bare habitats.

Action: - MFish to invite Mark Morrison to present his research to the forum.

Kahawai legal challenge

John H updated forum members on the recent kahawai court decision. Lawyers representing MFish, commercial fishers and recreational fishers are currently analysing the judgement. It is too early at present to say if the matter will be taken further.

Bay of Islands Marine Survey

Information regarding the Oceans 20/20 project was passed out to forum members. Murray gave a brief update on the work proposed for the BOI. The details of the project are still unclear with LINZ, NIWA and MFish working to clarify the project brief. The project will include $5.6 million for the Tangaroa to complete deep sea surveying, and for smaller vessels to survey in the shallower areas. The project will undertake mapping of seabed habitats and biodiversity in the area, and is expected to start during 2009.

Concern was raised about the lack of publicity for the project. Geoff was keen to ensure that the project received positive coverage in the local media and warned that the public’s first impressions would be important.

Action: - MFish to update members on the project during the next meeting.

Whangarei Harbour Survey

MFish provided forum members with information regarding upcoming surveillance for non-indigenous marine species with Whangarei harbour. Forum members spoke of their concerns about the abundance and spread of sea squirt within Whangarei Harbour, and the need for surveys to be followed up. Doug commented that sea squirt was creeping further down the coastline and that the amount of sea squirt in the channel of Rangaunu Harbour had noticeably increased within a year.

World Recreational Fishing Conference

The forum was provided with a handout giving information about the World Recreational Fishing Conference. John H spoke to the forum about the paper he will present on the management of the striped marlin fishery in New Zealand with assistance from Kim Walshe.

Section 13 Update

Murray gave a brief outline of the current legal issues concerning setting a total allowable catch (TAC) under section 13 and noted that MFish is working with the Minister’s office on potential solutions to these issues. MFish will keep the forum updated on any developments.

Paua Accumulation and Exportation Rule Changes

MFish is currently proposing to change the regulations controlling the export and accumulation of recreationally-caught paua. Murray explained that some suspected poachers have successfully argued that large paua stockpiles found on their property had been collected legally over time. Forum members were provided with a preliminary MFish proposal for changes to the recreational accumulation and personal export limits. The forum supported the need for a change to the current regulations. The majority of the forum supported, in principle, personal accumulation of paua being limited to 2 ½ daily bag limit (i.e., no more than 25 paua) and the majority of the forum also agreed that paua should not be taken out of the country unless through a licensed fish exporter.

Paul also raised concerns of a local business which is selling paua from a car.

Action:  - MFish to keep the forum updated about the review of Paua rules and to pass forum’s views to the coordinator of the review. Paul to discuss his concern with Whangarei Compliance.

Compliance update

Darren informed the forum about the recent passing of long-serving Northland Fisheries Officer, Warren Brown.

Darren gave the forum a brief summary of Operation PAID (paua and illegal divers). The operation involved 130 fisheries officers and 70 police from across the country simultaneously carrying out enforcement actions relating to illegal paua harvest and sale. The operation saw 65 suspects apprehended in relation to over 300 possible charges.

The operation was in response to ongoing concerns at the level of illegal paua catch, particularly in the Wellington region. The operation involved the deployment of a “special duties” fisheries officer working undercover to infiltrate a major poaching ring and identify key offenders involved.

Fishplan Updates

Murray gave an update of the most recent Northland Scallop Fisheries Plan meeting, with fishplan members currently working on goals and objectives for the plan. John C praised the lack of conflict between sectors in the Northland scallop fishery, highlighting that unlike the Coromandel scallop fishery, the minimum size limit for scallops in Northland is the same between sectors.

Des provided a handout for forum members detailing the progress of the North-West Finfish Plan Advisory Group. The group is continuing to work on the information brief, and during the last meeting on the 24th June began identifying group member’s goals and objectives for the fishery.

The Highly Migratory Species plan is continuing to develop goals and objectives for large pelagic fisheries (including tuna and gamefish).

Paul raised concern at reports that commercial fishers were proposing to readdress commercial catch of marlin. Murray noted that MFish is aware that this issue has been raised by commercial fishers, and are also aware that the recreational sector is strongly opposed to the idea.

Shared fisheries

Murray provided the forum with a brief update on the progress of the Shared Fisheries Working Group. The group is making slow progress and the timeframe initially set to resolve the issue has not been met. MFish will keep the forum updated of future developments.

Next meeting

Murray to arrange the date for the next meeting via email. Geoff requested that the next meeting be held at 5pm and this was agreed to by the forum.