Fiord marine life threatened, calls for tougher fishing rules

There are calls for tougher rules around recreational fishing in Fiordland National Park, with advocates arguing the environment is being threatened by overfishing.

For decades people have caught kaimoana in the waters of Aotearoa’s largest fiord, Doubtful Sound.

“My dad started bringing me in here when I was 10, that's about 30 years ago,” says local fisher Ben Wornell.

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But what was once known as the Sound of Silence has been getting noisier, with recent decades bringing an influx of visitors.

And while tourists may disturb the tranquillity, it’s the surge of recreational fishing that has advocates worried.

The Fiordland Marine Guardians were established to advise the Government on the management of the Fiordland Marine Area.

Their advice right now - tougher fishing rules.

“Accessibility is easier through helicopters, boats have got bigger, there’s more options around charter vessels, there are more and more coming here people filming and telling the story of the place which is going further and bringing people here, so it almost ends up being a little bit exponential,” says member Gavin Tayles.

They are calling for rules to reduce bag limits for some finfish species, moving the designated fishing zone into a more productive area, and temporarily closing some fisheries altogether, like hāpuka and scallops.

“We will see further depletion of stocks and some of our stocks are severely depleted in some areas, so we risk losing some of our key species.”

Another issue is a lack of data on fish stock.

Fish Mainland is a non-profit organisation representing the interests of recreational fishers.

They’ve developed an app with joint funding from the Ministry of Primary Industries, said director Alan Key, in the hopes that anglers will monitor their take.

“It's a pretty ad-hoc system they're using at the moment to access how many fish recreational fishers are taking, if we don't know what's being taken, we don't know how to manage it.”

Pure Salt is an eco-tourism and charter boat company that operates in Fiordland.

Co-owner, Maria Kuster, said she welcomed public consultation on the proposed changes, which is due to start on Monday.

"A couple of years ago, we [charter companies] sat around the table and came up with a voluntary code of conduct," she said.

"We have to take responsibility for our actions... no matter if you're on a charter vessel or going out on your own boat."

Fisheries New Zealand told 1News in a statement that the ministry "encourages anyone with an interest to have their say on the proposed changes before consultation closes on 30 September."

"The proposed changes would support the sustainability of the fishery so it can continue to be enjoyed for future generations."