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Welcome Letter to David Benson-Pope
New
Minister of Fisheries
26
March 2004
Hon David Benson-Pope
Minister of Fisheries
Parliament Buildings
WELLINGTON
26 March 2004
Dear Minister
Congratulations on you recent
appointment as Minister of Fisheries and Associate Minister for
Environment and Justice.
I am writing on behalf of
non-commercial fishers and our NGO option4.co.nz. Our team has been
working with the Ministry of Fisheries, NZ Recreational Fishing
Council, NZ Big Game Fishing Council and the NZ Angling & Casting
Association for four years on the clarification of amateur fishing
rights. We also seek better representation of our views in the fisheries
management process.
In 2000 the Ministry of Fisheries
produced a public discussion document called Soundings. The document
outlined three options for the future management of recreational
fishing:
- The status quo;
- Proportional share;
- Proportional share and recreational self-management.
Our group presented a fourth
option, hence our name. Our option was supported by 98.5% of the
public who submitted to the process - 61,178 individuals. Since
then we have made good progress in communication with the Ministry,
on representation of non-commercial fishers and in unanimity among
representative groups. However we turned down an option to support
legislative change to section 21 of the Fisheries Act 1996 last
year.
Broadly we are a group that
is trying to maintain reasonable harvesting and access rights for
non-commercial fishers in a marine environment that is increasingly
coming under pressure from competing users. We want to see our inshore
resources protected from pollution, siltation, invasive species
and overfishing. We also seek a coordinated, integrated approach
to marine protection issues.
Our website www.option4.co.nz
is our most efficient way of communicating with our support
base and the public. We use it as a resource and record of process.
option4 is determined to see good process and adequate consultation
when dealing with the public. We trust you will be willing to work
with option4 to achieve the best possible outcome for the public
of New Zealand.
As can be seen for the recent
debate on the foreshore and seabed, the sea has been thought of
as a commons and private ownership is being resisted. You should
be aware we have misgivings about some aspects of current policy.
A major concern is that the power of certain commercial fishing
methods has established catch rights beyond what can be sustained
and, if allowed to continue, is likely to reduce fish stocks to
an unacceptable degree. Needless to say, that would seriously disadvantage
the non-commercial fisher.
While we acknowledge the
Quota Management System (QMS) has gone a long way toward producing
a sustainable commercial harvest we suspect the Ministry is still
set on inflicting a regime of tradable property rights on the non-commercial
sector. We strongly oppose that idea and believe we speak for the
public who we represent.
If future changes in allocation
are required to redress the imbalance of the past, it will probably
be the taxpayer that ends up compensating the fishing industry,
yet again. We trust you will be giving serious consideration to
the upcoming decisions regarding new species entering the QMS, kahawai
in particular.
We ruefully accept that the
non-commercial sector will always struggle to get a fair deal against
a $1.5 billion industry. But we are well equipped to fight and,
where necessary, we will. It is our view that the resource should
be managed in the best interests of the public: short-term commercial
gains should never have priority over long-term conservation and
growth. The aspirations and day-to-day concerns of those of us who
fish for food and pleasure should not be subjugated to commercial
greed.
We look forward to working
with you and your Ministry to ensure the best value for all New
Zealanders is achieved through the sustainable use and harvest of
our marine resources.
Yours faithfully
Paul Barnes
Project Leader
On behalf of the option4
team
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