The Minister of Māori Affairs and Associate Minister of Fisheries, Parekura Horomia, looks to the future of Māori involvement in New Zealand’s fisheries – commercial, customary and recreational.

Setting the scene

Māori are major and successful players in New Zealand’s fisheries and aquaculture industries.

At the passage of the Māori Fisheries Act 2004, Te Ohu Kai Moana (TOKM) held in excess of 70,000 tonnes of quota, with an estimated value of $303 million. Under the Act, this will be transferred to the asset holding companies of 57 separate mandated iwi organisations, with an additional $20 million and income shares in Aotearoa Fisheries Limited.

Māori interests are also strongly focused on the customary use of fisheries resources. The Fisheries (Kaimoana Customary Fishing) Regulations 1998 strengthen the rights of tangata whenua to manage their fisheries. These regulations let iwi and hapū manage their non-commercial fishing in a way that best fits their local practices.

Māori are, of course, also keen recreational fishers. We have been catching fish for food and fun for as long as we remember.

Challenges facing the industry

In recent years we have seen a consolidation within the fishing industry, so that there are now fewer, but significantly larger, fishing operators.

The demise of small fishing operators has also been caused by external pressures like the rise in fuel prices.

These same factors will present significant risks and barriers to iwi hoping to set up fishing businesses with their settlements.

Another challenge for Māori will be the species mix and quantity of quota made available to each mandated iwi organisation through the fisheries settlement.

Marine reserves

The Government has recently established marine reserves in Whangārei Harbour, Volkner Rocks, north Taranaki and more recently the Wellington south coast.

The Government intends to follow through with the applications for marine reserves off the coast of Great Barrier Island and perhaps a small portion of Akaroa Harbour.

The Marine Protected Areas Policy (MPA) and Implementation Plan announced by the Government in early 2006 marks an important transition point in considering proposals for future marine reserves.

Tangata whenua will have a chance to say where they think marine reserves or other marine management tools should be, before they are proposed.

This is a good start for developing a comprehensive network of protected marine areas and ensures that proposals have been strategically considered.

This policy encourages consideration of all of the available tools and promotes better engagement with local communities and Māori on areas for protection.

Bottom trawling

Bottom trawling is an issue the Government is addressing on both the international stage and closer to home.

New Zealand has been a leading advocate at the United Nations General Assembly for the adoption of controls on bottom trawling on the high seas, by using mechanisms that have integrity and are based on good science.

Late last year the United Nations adopted a resolution calling for measures to address the impacts of bottom fishing on vulnerable marine ecosystems on the high seas, particularly seamounts, hydrothermal vents and cold water corals.

New Zealand will continue to work constructively with the international community to give effect to that resolution.

In our own waters, New Zealand is also actively managing bottom trawling. This is a fishing method that can damage the seafloor, but also one that is of great economic importance to our fisheries, so getting the balance right is important.

The Government will soon consult on a strategy to set limits on the acceptable level of bottom trawling to give effect to the obligations under the Fisheries Act.

Shared fisheries

Shared fisheries are those where customary, recreational and commercial uses intersect.

There is uncertainty about how to address allocation issues among sectors. There is no provision for redress following adjustments in allocations. In addition, there is a lack of information on amateur catch.

Amateur fishers, many of whom are Māori, are not resourced or structured to engage properly in fisheries management.

In October 2006 the Government released a Shared Fisheries document to start a process whereby these matters can be discussed and suggestions made to help resolve these difficult issues.

All stakeholders agree that our fisheries resources need to be managed sustainably, but we also need to make best use of these resources.

The Government has no intention whatsoever of interfering with any deed of settlement contained in the Treaty of Waitangi Fisheries Settlement of 1992. Nor is there any intention of interfering with the Quota Management System except by a willing buyer-willing seller process.

Iwi leaders have made it clear to me that they support the idea of a comprehensive management regime.

Fisheries plans

Fisheries plans are intended to provide an objectives-based management approach to fisheries. At its simplest, objectives-based fisheries management is being clear about what we want to achieve in fisheries – our objectives – and how we will manage the fishery to achieve our objectives.

The objectives must deliver both Government obligations and tangata whenua and stakeholder goals.

Good progress is being made in implementing objectives-based management. Twenty-six plans describing current management of all New Zealand fisheries are scheduled for completion in 2007.

These will be used as the starting point for the Ministry of Fisheries and tangata whenua and stakeholders to develop new objectives-based plans for all fisheries over the next five years.

The development of these plans provides for the input and participation of Māori. The Ministry of Fisheries will work with iwi. and Māori will need to bring proposals to the table.

Working face to face and recognising the shared nature of our fisheries resources are important as we develop consensus on how to progress.