How many millions of snapper are being wasted every year due to commercial fishing? That’s a simple question. After the 2013 controversy Minister Nathan Guy and commercial interests agreed to a raft of measures to estimate the weight of undersized snapper returned to the sea in the northeastern fishery, Snapper 1. After numerous requests, some…
The scallop fishery at the top of the South Island is at its lowest recorded level, it continues to decline, and there are doubts about the future growth of young scallops. Nathan Guy’s recent decision to close part of Southern scallops to all fishing for the upcoming season may enable some regrowth, but is only…
The commercial fishing industry has recently taken a battering by an in-depth study of under reporting and wasteful dumping of fish in New Zealand waters over the last 60 years. For Karl Warr, a commercial fisherman in Hawke’s Bay, this wasn’t a surprise – he has seen the issue throughout his 15-year commercial career. But…
Gurnard are a special treat so it is concerning that increasing numbers of people are highlighting the scarcity of this prized fish on the eastern seaboard. For years they have been a rare catch in the Hauraki Gulf. Now it seems Bay of Plenty fishers are starting to feel the bite. Decades of inshore trawling…
Threats of compensation claims over the years have heavily influenced Ministerial decisions, even when the need for a catch reduction was obvious. Now we have a litany of fish stocks with uncatchable Total Allowable Commercial Catches (TACCs) and no prospects of precautionary management in sight. It is time we clarified the nature of quota so…
