MFish Update “He pänui”
Northern Region November 2006
Shared fisheries proposals released
A shared fisheries discussion paper has been produced by the Ministry of Fisheries, guided by decisions of the Minister of Fisheries and Cabinet, so people can have their say on proposals to improve the management of New Zealand’s shared fisheries. Shared fisheries are those in which commercial, amateur and customary fishers all participate. Most shared fisheries are inshore fisheries (including snapper, blue cod, kahawai, rock lobster and paua) - but they also include offshore fisheries such as gamefish, and freshwater fisheries such as eels.
Cabinet has approved the ideas in the discussion paper for public consultation. However, the ideas are not set in concrete. All can be changed or developed in response to public feedback.
If adopted, the proposals in the discussion paper will require further detailed development. Putting the proposed shared fisheries management framework into action may take several years.
Find out more
You can find out more about the proposals by:
- Reading the full discussion paper. The discussion paper can be obtained on the web at www.fish.govt.nz or by calling 0800 666 675 or contacting the Ministry of Fisheries.
- Coming along to a public consultation meeting. These will be held in main centres from late November to mid-December 2006
- Checking the background information and Frequently Asked Questions on the web. We will be updating these pages regularly so you can stay up-to-date with the shared fisheries consultation and management reform process.
Making a submission
We are seeking your views on the proposals and options contained in the discussion paper. We need your views by 28 February 2007. You can make a submission on-line, or by contacting the Ministry of Fisheries.
How will final decisions be made?
MFish will consider the submissions made on this discussion paper, carry out further study and develop recommendations for the Government. This process will involve working with other government departments to ensure that a consistent and coherent approach is taken. Cabinet will make final decisions in mid-2007.
Mai i Ngä Kuri a Wharei ki Tihirau Iwi Fisheries Forum (Bay of Plenty Region)
An agreement between the Ministry of Fisheries and Bay of Plenty Iwi Forum was signed on 12 October 2006. This formalises the relationship Mai i Ngä Kuri a Wharei ki Tihirau and the Ministry of Fisheries have developed over the past four years. The forum provides a sound platform for iwi to move beyond managing local impacts on their fishing grounds, to become part of the decision making around wider fisheries management issues. This could include decisions that affect fish stocks they use and the impacts on a fish stock across its whole region. The Bay of Plenty Forum involves 10 iwi and hapu groups. (TUMAI October 2006)
Snapper tagging in Hauraki Gulf
NIWA researchers will be tagging around 4000 snapper in the inner Hauraki Gulf this spring to track their movements and help figure out what keeps this fishery productive.
Scientists want to look at snapper movements and what types of habitats they seem to prefer, including looking at population ‘hotspots’. To get information on snapper movements, in November NIWA scientists will be tagging around snapper from commercial longliners in the Gulf. They are also doing night surveys of sleeping snapper, using a purpose-built video camera.
How you can help:
If you catch a snapper with a yellow plastic tag protruding from just below its dorsal fin, NIWA would like to hear from you.
The number to call is on the tag. They will ask you for info like the tag number, where and when you caught the fish, and its size. You’ll be sent a pre-paid, self-addressed envelope to return the tag to NIWA.
Once they get the tag, you’ll go into a draw for two prizes of rod/reel combos worth $350 each.
October Review of Sustainability Measures & Other Management Controls 2006
Sustainability Review October 2006
The Minister has made decisions on sustainability measures for the start of the fishing year beginning on 1 October. The full decisions are outlined on the MFish website. Decisions relevant to the northern region include:
- Orange roughy 1 (northern New Zealand) - reduce the total allowable catch from 1,470 tonnes to 840 tonnes (this decision is now subject to legal challenge);
- Alfonsino 1 (northern New Zealand) – maintain current total allowable catch of 304 tonnes, and encourage industry to improve their participation in adaptive management programme to collect information on status of stock;
- ‘Low knowledge’ stocks (mainly deepwater fish species around NZ) – increase total allowable catches for 18 stocks to provide more realistic catch limits following better reporting of commercial catch since their introduction into QMS in 1998 and 1999. Species include cardinalfish, frostfish, ghost shark, rubyfish, ribaldo, sea perch, and white warehou.
Regulatory Review April 2007
The Minister has recently made final decisions on changes to various fisheries regulations applicable to the northern North Island:
- Proposal to update guidelines for the setting and varying of deemed values used for balancing commercial catch at the end of a fishing year;
- Freshwater Eels – proposal to apply the South Island commercial eel maximum size limit (4 kgs) nationwide;
- Fifth Schedule – proposal to review species on the Fifth Schedule, which allows for 45% aggregation of quota shares;
- Inshore trawl form – proposal for a new form to replace existing inshore trawl catch and effort returns to provide better information;
- Catfish – proposals to prohibit the possession of live catfish by recreational fishers and sale of live catfish by commercial fishers.
A press release and decision letter will be issued shortly, outlining his decisions. Changes will be implemented by 1 April 2007.
Review of Recreational Regulations Round 2: 2006
The Ministry has given the Minister its final advice on proposed changes to the regulations that apply to recreational fishing. The topics covered in the advice are:
- Whether undersize fish/ fish larger than minimum size/ tagged fish should be allowed to be taken and then released without being counted as part of a fisher’s daily bag limit;
- Introduce/change minimum legal sizes for:
- Gurnard – to 25cm
- Trumpeter – to 45c
- Blue cod – to 30cm in the North Island
- Change the scallop season to begin on 1 September and end on 31 March (current season is 15 July – 14 February).
The Minister is expected to release his decision letter very shortly, but changes will not be implemented until April 2007, to allow time for regulatory amendments to be made.
Northland scallop catch limit
The Minister has made his decisions on an in-season increase to the catch limits for the Northland scallop stock as follows:
- The total catch limit was increased from 75 tonnes meatweight to 120 tonnes meatweight.
- Commercial quota owners got an increase in the Annual Catch Entitlement from 40 to 70 tonnes meatweight;
- The allowance for other sources of fishing-related mortality was increased from 20 to 24 tonnes meatweight;
- the allowance for recreational fishing was increased from 7.5 to 13 tonnes meatweight;
- the allowance for customary Maori fishing was increased from 7.5 to 13 tonnes meatweight.
The total catch limit and allowances will revert to previous levels at the end of the fishing season.
Maui’s dolphins
The Ministry of Fisheries and the Department of Conservation have been jointly working to develop a Threat Management Plan for Maui’s dolphins, which will contain strategies to deal with all significant threats facing the dolphins.
The development of the draft Threat Management Plan has proven more complex than initially envisaged, so there have been delays along the way. Measures identified in the Plan are not likely to be implemented until around the middle of next year.
In the meantime, MFish has had a look at whether any interim arrangements need to be put in place to protect the dolphins (in addition to measures already in place, e.g. set net closures along parts of the west coast).
A discussion paper was recently released, outlining MFish’s assessment of where additional measures might be needed, along with suggestions for what to do next. The paper is available on the Ministry’s website, or by contacting the Auckland office.
Consultation papers on the web
All of the papers that the Ministry has recently consulted on as part of the sustainability measures and regulation reviews are available on the new Ministry of Fisheries website, at:
http://www.fish.govt.nz/en-nz/Consultations
Intertidal shellfish monitoring (Auckland Fisheries Management Area)
This research project is a continuation of a monitoring programme started in 1992. Customary and recreational fishers extensively harvest intertidal shellfish resources in the Auckland, Northland and Bay of Plenty areas. The condition of some intertidal shellfish resources available to recreational and customary harvest has been the subject of concern for several years. The main species of interest are cockle and pipi.
The objective of this project is to determine the distribution, abundance and size frequency of these species at selected beaches during the 2006-07 fishing year. Areas to be surveyed this summer include:
‘Te Roopu Awatea’ is a network of staff in the Ministry of Fisheries whose role includes contributing towards creating an environment conducive to tahā Māori in the workplace. Te Roopu Awatea also works towards policies and procedures that ensure Māori values and beliefs are incorporated into the MFish environment. Around 60 Ministry of Fisheries staff from around the country gathered at Pipitea Marae in Pöneke (Wellington) at the end of October for Te Roopu Awatea’s annual hui. The theme of the hui was ‘working smarter’, and staff explored ways they can help the Ministry meet its obligations to Maori by working smarter.