| |
TV
and t-shirts: Fisheries Feud
Blenheim
Sun
January
2005
|
|
This article was originally
published in the Blenheim Sun
January 2005
Marlborough
recreational fishers are backing a campaign to fight government
plans to allow corporate fishing companies to over exploit the popular
sea fish the kahawai.
Chairman
of the Marlborough Recreational Fishers' Association Tony Orman
says in a media statement that four national recreational fishing
groups have combined efforts to set up the "Kahawai Legal Challenge".
Together
they will fight through the High Court a government decision to
allow new commercial kahawai fishing quotas.
"Many
consider these to be just a continuation of the plundering of kahawai
numbers."
A
major public television fundraising campaign is to start in the
next few weeks to raise money to support the challenge over several
months leading up to the High Court hearing. The case should be
heard about the middle of the year.
Fund
raising by way of donations and selling T-shirts is being organised
locally by the Marlborough Recreational Fishers' Association.
The
group takes issue with the decision of the fisheries minister David
Benson-Pope to make a 15% reduction in both commercial and recreational
fishing levels for kahawai, saying it is necessary to safeguard
the species. Recreational fishers say the measure is totally inadequate
and merely continues the over fishing of the already depleted species.
"The
new commercial limit will push kahawai stocks to a further all-time
low, already depleted after 20 years of purse-seine fishing," says
Tony Orman.
"The
government seemed obsessed with privatising the ocean by way of
the tradeable quota management system which gave private property
rights to species.
"
Kahawai is one of 21 new fish species added to the Ministry of Fisheries
quota management system (QMS) since October 1 last year."
The
Minister had breached section 21 of the Fisheries Act in not ensuring
the fishery remained sustainable, according to Kahawai Legal Challenge
campaign manager Don Glass, of Auckland.
"We
believe he is in breach of his own act," he said.
The minister is
by law required to consider the public as Section 21 of law requires
the minister, when setting the total allowable commercial catch, to
allow for "Maori customary, recreational and other mortality".
TOP
|
