Articles

Alliance slams decision to continue trawling Hauraki Gulf

August 9, 2023 News today that the government will allow bottom trawling to continue in large areas of the Hauraki Gulf is being met by strong opposition from an alliance of groups campaigning to get the destructive fishing method out of the marine park. Released today, the decision is part of the Hauraki Gulf Fisheries Plan, and while […]

Government fishing plan ignores public outrage

August 8, 2023 Government approval for a plan that supports the ongoing use of destructive fishing methods along New Zealand’s coastline has been labelled an outrage by recreational fishing and environmental interests. “There’s no plan to provide New Zealanders who are already struggling to feed whānau with affordable kaimoana. There’s no plan to support the struggling regional economies […]

Hauraki Gulf Alliance presents petition to Parliament. 22 June 2023

June 22, 2023 Today, a diverse range of recreational fishing, environmental, law, corporate and business organisations have come together as the Hauraki Gulf Alliance to deliver a petition calling for bottom trawling, scallop dredging, and Danish seining to be banned from within the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park. The petition of 36,589 signatures will be presented to MPs outside […]

Strong reef protection a united front

May 22, 2023 A new artificial reef off Napier Port is set to become a flourishing environment thanks to the collaboration between mana whenua, LegaSea Hawkes Bay, Port of Napier, and the community. This collaboration has already produced two other artificial reefs in Hawke’s Bay, one north of Pania Reef and another at a shipwreck site. After only […]

Thousands want trawling gone

May 15, 2023 In March over 7000 New Zealanders united to submit against the ongoing use of bottom trawling and scallop dredging in the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park. These submitters were responding to Fisheries New Zealand’s draft Hauraki Gulf Fisheries Plan, issued in January.  Public consultation on the plan is now closed. The draft action plan is supposed […]

Mushy fleshed snapper in the Hauraki Gulf

April 3, 2023 At the LegaSea-led Kai Ika filleting station, we fillet fish for amateur fishers. We also collect and distribute unwanted fishheads and frames to marae and whānau around Auckland who revere these tasty morsels.    In August 2022, before snapper spawning season even began, we noticed a large proportion of the fish coming through the Kai Ika […]

Groups unite to celebrate scallop closure

March 20, 2023 Environmental, iwi and recreational fishing interests in the Hauraki Gulf are celebrating the Minister’s decision to close the Coromandel scallop fishery indefinitely.  The Coromandel scallop fishery stretches from Leigh, Rodney in the north to Maketū in the Bay of Plenty.  Ngāti Hei led the closure with a rāhui prohibiting the harvest of scallops on the […]

A healthier Hauraki Gulf must come first

March 14, 2023 It’s time to look into the future of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park. There is a growing awareness that we collectively need to be doing more to protect and enhance the waters of the Marine Park. So it’s unfortunate that Government plans for the future management of the Park include maintaining areas for trawling and […]

Communities and fishers welcome emergency scallop closure

December 14, 2022 Communities and fishers have welcomed Minister David Parker’s decision to use emergency powers to close the last two commercial scallop beds in New Zealand, in the Hauraki Gulf. The other scallop beds around Northland, Auckland and the Bay of Plenty, were closed earlier this year after a widespread community outcry at the disappearance of the […]

Proposed Hauraki Gulf marine protection – a farce?

December 6, 2022 Support for more protection of treasured Hauraki Gulf Marine Park waters continues to grow, so it’s interesting that recent Government proposals to increase no-fishing areas do not necessarily mean more fish in the water. In September 2022, the Department of Conservation asked for public feedback on a range of proposals, presenting 12 High Protection Areas […]