fREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
I go fishing. Will Shared Fisheries affect me?
Individuals who go down to the wharf to throw in a line and catch a fish don’t have much effect on the sustainability of our fisheries resource.
Maori do not want to stop anyone doing that.
What we are concerned about is the catch taken largely by fishing on charter operators and recreational fishers who use fish finders and other new electronic technologies to ensure there’s always a good catch. Some charter operators have reported up to 1400 boats out fishing in some parts of New Zealand and that must have a detrimental affect on the state of our fisheries.
Additionally, some of these are businesses making money off the public resource. They take people out on their boats for a fish and make money without having to show any form of responsibility for its sustainability or pay for use of that public resource.
When restructuring the way in which fisheries are allocated to the customary, commercial and recreational sectors, it is important that we fully understand how much fish is being caught.