Tarakihi specimes are caught by commercial vessels in all areas of New Zealand.

New catch limits set for 32 fish stocks

NEW ZEALAND
Friday, September 21, 2018, 02:40 (GMT + 9)

The commercial tarakihi (Nemadactylus macropterus) catch in the fisheries areas off the east coast of the North and South Islands is to be reduced by 20 per cent in an effort to rebuild the depleted stock, announced Fisheries Minister Stuart Nash.

The minister has also signalled further cuts to capture of this resource are in store next year unless the commercial fishing industry can develop a plan to rebuild the fishery within ten years.

To take this decision, the minister has reviewed the total allowable catch and other management controls for 32 stocks as part of the regular twice yearly sustainability round. In this regard, he also explained the reductions are based on the best available scientific information and show the effectiveness of the quota management system.

“The tarakihi fishery is of great importance to commercial inshore trawlers and for recreational and customary fishing. I have decided a package of measures is required to get this important fishery back to where it needs to be, which in technical terms is 40 per cent of the unfished spawning stock biomass. It is currently at less than half this target,” Minister Nash stressed.

Other changes include increases in catch limits for fish stocks that are doing well, such as southern bluefin tuna, orange roughy and scampi, and a decrease in catch limits for stocks that need help to rebuild, such as longfin eels and Northern flatfish.

The organisation Deepwater Group welcomed the increases in commercial total allowable catches (CTACs) announced for four deep-sea fisheries, supported by the best available scientific information:

• Ling (LIN 5): 20 per cent increase, from 3,955 to 4,735 tonnes;
• Oreo (OEO 4): increase of 20 per cent, from 3,000 to 3,600 tonnes;
• Orange roughy (ORH 3B): increase of 17 per cent, from 5,197 to 6,091 tonnes (this is the first increase in stages over three years to reach 7,667 tonnes);
• Scampi (SCI 3): increase of 20 per cent, from 340 to 408 tonnes.

Nash decided increases to catch limits for 11 stocks, and decreases to catch limits for 12 stocks. The catch limits for the rest of the stocks will remain the same this fishing year.

Stocks reviewed this year include those of cultural importance to tangata whenua such as longfin and shortfin eels, as well as some shared fish stocks that are important to commercial and recreational sectors, such as tarakihi, flatfish, pāua, and red gurnard.

“I have also decided to close the Kaipara Harbour scallop fishery to recreational scallop fishing under section 11 of the Fisheries Act to allow the stock to recover. This means the Kaipara Harbour scallop fishery will be closed to both commercial and recreational fishing,” Minister Nash said.

These decisions come into effect October 1, 2018, except for the Kaipara Harbour scallop closure, which will come into effect later in October.

 
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