LegaSea newsletters

LegaSea newsletter #144 – Wise decision-making or blatant commercial bias?

March 27, 2024 Last Friday the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries, Shane Jones, made his first round of decisions for a range of fish stocks across New Zealand. While we hoped for a positive outcome, we have instead been left with a sour taste for what is to come. What is clear from the decisions is the Minister’s […]

LegaSea newsletter #143 – Quite frankly, it’s embarrassing

March 13, 2024 It’s been 24 years since the establishment of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park and 9 years since the Sea Change programme was initiated to restore the Park. In that time tens of thousands of hours from volunteers, contractors and employees of a myriad of organisations have been invested into developing a pathway to restored abundance […]

LegaSea newsletter #142: Back into it

February 1, 2024 January is always a crazily busy time for the Fisheries Management crew at LegaSea and the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council. Twice a year, in April and October, our team dives into fish stock reviews. The April round kicks off in December, with submission deadlines looming in early February so the Minister can make decisions […]

LegaSea newsletter #141: The Year That Was 2023

January 24, 2024 As we reel in 2023, it’s a time to celebrate and reflect on all that we have achieved, thanks to your support. Together we have taken a stand against bottom trawling, the Industry Transformation Plan, the over allocation of our fish and even created chopping boards made out of trawl nets. Saying it was an […]

LegaSea newsletter #140 – Pushing for change

November 21, 2023 Pushing for change is not easy. It requires patience, knowledge and talking to the right person at the right time. But the most important part of it is public support. Without our supporters LegaSea is nothing. Everything we do is on account of the support and participation we get from you. So we want to […]

LegaSea newsletter #139 – An election, consultations and an AGM

September 28, 2023 Either coincidentally, or on purpose, there are two very important public consultations on Hauraki Gulf Marine Park issues running over the election and into November. A cynic might suggest that these were timed to keep the public focus away from these issues. It’s likely we will never find out if that’s true.

LegaSea newsletter #138 – Election fever

September 1, 2023 It must be election season as we’ve seen a range of fisheries plans, legislation and proposals from the government in the last few weeks. On Tuesday Rachel Brooking, Minister for Oceans and Fisheries, launched public consultation for the Bottom Fishing Access Zones, or trawl corridors, in the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park. Then on Wednesday the […]

LegaSea newsletter #137 – Government embraces bottom trawling

August 9, 2023 The government is forging ahead with support for ongoing bottom trawling despite widespread public outrage at the damage it is causing to the marine environment. Two decisions within days of each other confirm the government is committed to allowing bottom trawling, dredging and seining in inshore waters. Both decisions are contrary to the government’s vision […]

LegaSea newsletter #136 – Decisions, decisions…

July 6, 2023 We’re in the depths of winter now, but our team are hotly anticipating important fisheries decisions from Minister Rachel Brooking. There’s sufficient information available to make precautionary decisions, so stand by. Will the Minister allow bottom trawling to continue in the Hauraki Gulf? Will New Zealanders have to subsidise a new trawl fleet? And does […]

LegaSea newsletter #135 – Your voice is really important

June 15, 2023 It may not be the busiest time for catching fish on the water in this mid-winter cold snap, but there’s lots going on with our fisheries. Public consultation on the draft Industry Transformation Plan closed on Sunday. Thanks to all of you that took the time to make a submission. 2800 submissions were made using […]