Key Points:

• Customary catch data is withheld from the public.
• Though reporting is legally required, Fisheries NZ (FNZ) says it cannot release this information.
• FNZ will not verify whether mandatory reporting is occurring, whether national totals are complete, or whether the data used in management decisions is accurate.
• This leaves a gap in fisheries management.
• All other sectors’ catch data is public—customary catch is the only exception.

New no-take (for most) fishing areas have been formally adopted by Northland Regional Council (NRC) following a ground-breaking* Environment Court decision that confirmed fishing – including recreational – is no longer permitted from Maunganui Bay (Deep Water Cove) to Oporua (Oke Bay) in the Bay of Islands as well as around the Mimiwhangata peninsula, which is 50 kilometres north of Whangārei.

Te Ngāi Tū Ahuriri Rūnanga is the most recent applicant for a mātaitai reserve,* which includes the coastline north of Amberley Beach in North Canterbury, stretching for 5.6km, and offshore 1km.