May 22, 2020
Yes, there is strong grassroots mana whenua support for reform to ensure there is an abundant fishery. Over the last 15 years we have attended and participated in many hui where people have expressed their concerns about depletion and their desire for more fish in the sea. Research shows that 73% of Māori think reform […]
May 22, 2020
The pathway to abundance has been laid out in the Rescue Fish policy document. The bottom line is that the Quota Management System needs to be dismantled. The Government needs to buy back existing quotas in the inshore fisheries. Catch levels need to be reset to enable fish stocks to recover to healthy levels. Bottom […]
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 […]
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 […]
May 22, 2020
Because 78% of quota shares are now owned by 10 entities.The resource rentals that initially applied to commercial catches were abolished in 1994. Those rentals were a tax that provided a return to the Government in recognition that a national, natural resource was being exploited for private profits. Quota holders now pay levies, which only […]
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 […]
May 22, 2020
The Quota Management System (QMS) is the system for regulating commercial fishing in New Zealand. The Minister of Fisheries decides the annual catch limits for each area and species. Investors buy quota, giving the owner a perpetual right to fish in a particular area, for a specific species. Quota can be fished by the owner, […]
May 22, 2020
The international standard for fish stock management is supporting it at a level equivalent to a minimum of 50% of the unfished biomass. Biomass is the combined weight and number of fish in a stock. Unfished biomass is the stock’s estimated natural size. Achieving the standard of 50% of unfished biomass requires managing a stock […]
May 22, 2020
The goal of Rescue Fish is to rebuild depleted inshore fish stocks and restore biodiversity. This will be achieved by managing fish stocks to comply with international standards. To achieve success the Government needs to buy back existing quota shares in the inshore fisheries and start again.
May 22, 2020
Yes, however, the Rescue Fish policy is focused on managing fish stocks at higher levels and restoring biodiversity so establishing a marine reserve is not the first priority. The Rescue Fish policy proposes that we turn the entire coastline of New Zealand into a Special Management Area. Rules can be made to ban all bottom […]
