Fisheries ‘Reforms’ A Further Blow To Hopes For A Transparent And Sustainable Industry

Proposed changes to the Fisheries Act will undermine the integrity and efficacy of New Zealand’s fisheries management system and the public’s right to have a say in it, says WWF-New Zealand.

Fisheries Minister Shane Jones today announced the Government will progress with its proposed amendments to the Fisheries Act. This includes changes to how catch limits are set, limiting the scope of onboard cameras, and restricting the public's ability to access camera footage using the Official Information Act (OIA).

WWF-New Zealand’s CEO, Dr Kayla Kingdon-Bebb, says some of these changes are deeply concerning.

“The Minister says he wants to remove ‘obstacles to growth’ for the fishing industry but that seems to be code for dramatically reducing public input and industry transparency.

“Yet again the bombastic Jones is pandering to his mates in industry at the expense of the public interest. These amendments will further undermine the industry’s social license, which is already pretty tenuous.”

Kingdon-Bebb says it’s wrong that on-board camera footage will be exempt from the OIA.

“This footage should be available. It’s a matter of transparency: the fish being caught by commercial fishing companies belong to the people of New Zealand - it’s a public resource. Kiwis also deserve to know how well commercial operators are managing interactions with our protected and threatened species - some of which, like the Antipodean albatross, Māui dolphin and New Zealand sealion are approaching the brink of extinction.

“The Minister seems to have conveniently forgotten that he’s charged with managing our fisheries on behalf of all New Zealanders.”

Cameras are only being rolled out to up to around 250 inshore commercial fishing vessels, despite the fact our deepwater fleet harvests the vast majority of New Zealand’s commercial catch - and primarily through the destructive practice of bottom-trawling.

“We need more cameras - not fewer - especially given our worryingly low rate of fisheries observer coverage, which is sitting at about 30 percent for the deepwater fleet.”

Early data from cameras on boats has already revealed a dramatic under-reporting of protected species bycatch and fish dumping by the industry to date, says Kingdon-Bebb.

“Last year the first tranches of data found a nearly 700% increase in the number of dolphins captured and albatross interactions up by 350% what was previously reported before cameras were rolled out.”

“What’s more, the roll-out of cameras on the inshore fleet revealed a 46% increase in reports of dumping of non-target fish species. As the vast majority of commercially-caught fish are sourced out in the deep water, one has to wonder just how many thousands of tonnes of fish are being dumped and unreported by the deepwater fleet every year. This makes a very compelling case for more cameras on boats.”

“That’s why WWF-New Zealand is demanding more cameras on commercial fishing boats. Cameras are our eyes and ears out on the water, and they inform how we manage our fisheries sustainably and to protect marine life.”

On top of that, these changes are utterly blind to the fact that climate change requires adaptive management, she adds.

“I guess we shouldn’t be surprised that Shane Jones is actively ignoring the reality of climate change; however, locking in unsustainable catch limits in the middle of the crisis will have significant repercussions for declining fish populations and our marine ecosystems. We need proper regulatory controls to ensure long-term sustainability of our fisheries. These need to be flexible enough to adapt to unforeseen changes in our marine ecosystems arising as a result of our changing climate- and this ain't it.”

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