August 7, 2025
In April, over 25,000 of you made it pretty clear via our submission form that you did not want the proposed ‘reforms’ to the Fisheries Act to go ahead. Unfortunately, your voices have been ignored. In an unsurprising turn of events, Shane Jones announced today that the government has agreed to his “reforms”, and will […]
August 6, 2025
Public consultation is one of the few times that everyday New Zealanders can have a say on the future management of our fisheries. It’s also when our team at LegaSea, the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council and representative organisations pull together decades of knowledge, science and lived experience to advocate for more fish in the […]
July 30, 2025
Published in The Adventurer Magazine Jack Mackerel – those slippery little fish you chuck on your hook as bait to catch something bigger – are far more important than they’re given credit for. These so-called baitfish are a fundamental food source for larger predatory fish, marine mammals and seabirds. Without them, our coastal ecosystems begin […]
July 30, 2025
Published in Mahurangi Matters. By Sam Woolford “The Ocean is not alive like it used to be 25 yrs ago where we moved from one workup to another”. A comment we often receive from Hauraki Gulf fishers who spend more time chasing the diving seabirds feeding on the schools of baitfish – referred to as […]
July 21, 2025
The fish in our waters don’t belong to quota holders – they belong to all of us. They are a public resource, not a private asset, no matter how entitled the commercial sector may act. Owning quota gives the right to harvest fish, but it doesn’t mean those fish are theirs. Each year, the government […]
July 18, 2025
Blue cod are a Kiwi icon. Sadly, due to years of mismanagement, blue cod stocks around the country are severely depleted. 3 blue cod fisheries are up for review and you have a chance to have your say right now.
July 3, 2025
It’s that time again. Fisheries NZ has just dropped proposals to change catch limits for 35 different fish stocks around the country, with two more review papers expected by the end of June.
July 1, 2025
Blue cod isn’t just another fish. It’s the fish of the South, as iconic to the lower half of the country as snapper is to the north. It’s the one families plan holidays around, the one sizzling in the pan at the crib, blue cod are embedded in childhood memories of casting a line off the […]
June 30, 2025
“We don’t know what the recreational fishing sector is taking.” — Some guy on Facebook. It’s a comment we see usually from people trying to deflect the conversation away from the ongoing use of destructive fishing techniques, and from someone convinced that because they haven’t been interviewed at the boat ramp it never happens to […]
June 25, 2025
Published in Mahurangi Matters, June 9 2025 By Sam Woolford, LegaSea Project Lead As winter bites, many of us were left reminiscing about warmer days at last month’s Hutchwilco New Zealand Boat Show. For LegaSea, the show is a yearly highlight, connecting with passionate Kiwis about issues impacting our marine environment – from Caulerpa to […]
