The Hauraki Gulf Forum is marking today’s passage of the Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana Marine Protection Bill by acknowledging the communities who champion the preservation and restoration of the Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana / Te Moananui-ā-Toi, and calling for further urgent action to reverse the human impacts on the Gulf.

Co-Chair of the Forum, Cr Warren Maher, says the passage of this Bill is the result of many years of advocacy to progress protections for the Gulf, particularly through the development of Sea Change — Tai Timu Tai Pari, the Hauraki Gulf Marine Spatial Plan.

“We’ve waited a long time for the Hauraki Gulf to be given greater protections, and we want to pay tribute to everyone who has worked for decades to get us to this point.” Warren says.

“While the passage of this bill is a step towards those greater protections, the last-minute changes made to the bill are by no means the best outcome for the Gulf, or for the communities that have championed its preservation, restoration and management.

“There’s still a significant amount of work left to do to restore the Gulf, and prevent the ongoing degradation of our marine biodiversity through overfishing, pollution, sedimentation and climate change.”

Successive State of the Gulf reports have shown the ongoing state of environmental decline across the Gulf, and the urgent need for greater legislative protections for Aotearoa New Zealand’s oldest marine park.

Co-Chair of the Forum, Nicola Rata-MacDonald MNZM, says that a shared, grassroots vision of the Gulf’s revitalisation has been critical to ensuring these protections were passed into law.

“Today is the result of over a decade of collaboration between mana whenua and communities across the Hauraki Gulf, coming together to ensure that the Gulf can be enjoyed by future generations for decades to come.” Nicola says.

“We’re a long way off from our goal of 30 percent marine protection by 2030, and we cannot wait another decade for incremental progress — the Hauraki Gulf needs our help now.

“Removing recognition of whānau and hapū who exercise kaitiakitanga across the gulf from the bill will not stop us from doing what is needed to contribute to the protection and restoration of Te Moananui-ā-Toi — work we have done since the creation of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park over twenty-five years ago.”

Notes:

The Hauraki Gulf Marine Park:

The Hauraki Gulf Marine Park is New Zealand’s first marine park, established by the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Act in February 2000. At 1.2 million hectares (20 times the size of Lake Taupō), it stretches from Te Arai in the north to Waihi in the south and includes the Waitematā Harbour, Gulf Islands, Firth of Thames and the east coast of the Coromandel Peninsula. The Park is the seabird capital of the world, and a whale superhighway, but as successive State of the Gulf reports have shown, it is a shadow of its former self.

The Hauraki Gulf Forum:

The Hauraki Gulf Forum is a statutory governance board established under the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Act 2000 to promote the conservation and management of the natural, historic, and physical resources of the Hauraki Gulf, its islands, and catchments, for the benefit and enjoyment of the people and communities of the Gulf and New Zealand.

The Forum consists of representatives from tangata whenua of the Hauraki Gulf and its islands; the Ministers of Conservation, Oceans and Fisheries, and Māori Development; and elected members appointed by the Auckland Council, Hauraki District Council, Matamata-Piako District Council, Thames-Coromandel District Council, Waikato District Council and Waikato Regional Council.

The Forum is required to present triennial State of the Gulf reports regarding the state of the environment of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park. More information on the Forum and the Marine Park is available at www.gulfjournal.org.nz.

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