Fisheries Management

What is the Fisheries Management Area 1 policy?

August 23, 2018 The Fisheries Management Area 1 policy is a document developed by the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council and it applies to the area between North Cape and the eastern Bay of Plenty. LegaSea is promoting this policy as a way of providing future generations the fishing opportunities and marine resources we so gratefully inherited. Historic […]

What is the Gurnard 2 policy?

August 23, 2018 The Gurnard 2 policy is a document developed by the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council and it applies to the area between East Cape and Wellington. LegaSea is promoting this policy as a way of providing future generations the fishing opportunities and marine resources we so gratefully inherited. Gurnard used to be a staple recreational […]

Are there any catch limits for pilchard & mackerel?

August 23, 2018 Has the government leased out the area off upper North Island to enable commercial fishers to take sardines and mackerel with no limits? LegaSea comments No. Sardine-Pilchard The sardine we have in New Zealand is commonly called Pilchard.  They were bought into the Quota System about 10 years ago.  The New Zealand Sport Fishing Council […]

Why not apply a ‘land-all catch’ policy to commercial fishing?

August 23, 2018 LegaSea believes the ‘land-all catch’ policy proposed by Fisheries New Zealand fails to achieve its primary purpose – that landed commercial catch will equate to what is actually caught at sea. This is a misdirected attempt at curbing the damage inflicted by inshore trawlers. Our latest submission on a land-all catch policy was made in […]

Why don’t we apply a ‘land-all catch’ policy to recreational fishing?

August 23, 2018 A land-all catch policy is variously promoted as a way of reducing recreational fishing activity and related mortality, assuming that once the bag limit is caught the person will stop fishing. There are good reasons why LegaSea does not support a land-all catch policy being applied to recreational fishing, including the following – People will […]

Why is B40 promoted as a management target?

August 23, 2018 Prior to modern fishing fisheries were assumed to be at around 100% of virgin stock size. Industrial fishing reduced many inshore fish stocks to very low levels. A stock size of 40% of the unfished size (B40) is the contemporary estimate of the stock size that will produce the maximum sustainable yield (MSY). B40 is […]

What is the Crayfish 3 policy?

August 23, 2014 The Crayfish 3 policy is a document developed by the Gisborne Tatapouri Sports Fishing Club and the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council in 2014. It is aimed at increasing the size and abundance of crayfish in the eastern region. The policy applies on the North Island’s southeast coast, from the area south of East Cape […]

What are the main benefits of rebuilding our fish stocks?

May 22, 2020 The environment: Banning inshore trawling and dredging and transitioning to more eco-friendly fishing methods will result in a cleaner marine environment. There will be more fish in the water, fish will be healthier, and fish will be easier and cheaper to catch. Food security: The bulk of fish exports earns less than $3kg, while retailing […]

Why hasn’t the Government accepted the dire state of fisheries and done something about it before?

May 22, 2020 It is convenient for the Government to believe that the Quota Management System is the best way of managing fisheries. Also, because the quota owners have formed a powerful lobby that stridently protects its monopoly market position. This lobby has its own scientists and experts who maintain that the QMS cannot be dismantled because the […]

What is the TACC?

May 22, 2020 The Total Allowable Commercial Catch (TACC) is the maximum weight of a species of fish that can be taken by commercial fishers from a specified management area, in any one year. The TACC is specified in tonnes or kilos and is decided by the Minister of Fisheries every year. The TACC is shared amongst quota […]