The government recently announced that trawl methods will continue in parts of the Gulf, albeit restricted to ‘bottom fishing access zones’.
Currently, bottom-trawling and Danish seining are banned in just over a quarter of the Gulf’s waters. Under the proposed restrictions the banned areas would extend to nearly nine-tenths of the Gulf. The exact size and location of these trawl corridors are currently subject to public consultation.
Submissions on the trawl corridor proposals close on 6 November. We encourage you to have your say. See MPI website for information on how to make a submission: Proposed options for bottom fishing access zones (trawl corridors) in the Hauraki Gulf
Options being consulted on are:
Option 1: Danish seine fishing banned from 74.1 per cent and trawl fishing banned from 77.1 per cent of the Gulf shallower than 200m, with these fishing methods limited to 6 defined zones.
Option 2: Trawl and Danish seine fishing banned from 79.4 per cent and trawl fishing banned from 82.4 per cent of the Gulf shallower than 200m, and limit these fishing methods to 5 defined zones.
Option 3: Trawl and Danish seine fishing banned from 86.6 per cent and trawl fishing banned from 88.5 per cent of the Gulf shallower than 200m, and limit these fishing methods to 4 defined zones.
Option 4: Danish seine fishing banned from 87.3 per cent and trawl fishing banned from 89 per cent of the Gulf shallower than 200m, and limit these fishing methods to 4 defined zones.
The future of bottom-fishing methods in the 3.4 per cent of the Gulf that is deeper than 200 metres will be assessed in a different process.
Notably, the option to completely ban bottom trawling from the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park is not offered as an alternative.
DOC: Revitalising the Gulf: Government action to restore the Hauraki Gulf/Tīkapa Moana
Parliament: Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana Marine Protection Bill — First Reading
