QMS – Rescue Fish

The madness of the QMS

The Quota Management System has short-changed fish, mana whenua and the public since it was established in 1986.

The system was set up with the quota owners having to pay resource rentals. This only lasted a few years. For the past 30 years the commercial fishing industry has not paid for the use of these publicly-owned resources.

“Incredibly, we gave away most of our fisheries at no charge,” said LegaSea spokesman Scott Macindoe. “Perpetual property rights were created out of thin air, fully transferable and tax-free. Those who did the most damage to our fish stocks were the ones who reaped the greatest rewards.

“The public is getting such a raw deal. The promised rebuilds have simply not happened. One species after another is suffering the ‘sustainable depletion’ that inevitably occurs after decades of chasing the mythical ‘maximum sustainable yield’ that the QMS is driven by.”

Macindoe said the QMS had failed both coastal fish populations and those depending on fisheries for their livelihoods.

“To usher in the QMS thousands of artisanal part-time fishermen lost their permits. This had a devastating effect on small, regional communities. Some coastal towns in the Far North and on the East Coast have never recovered. The process to revoke fishing permits had a disproportionate effect on Māori, many of whom fished when the season was right and then worked elsewhere in the off-season. They were the source of good healthy food for their communities. We sure miss these whānau businesses today.”

When the government attempted to introduce new species into the QMS in 1987, Māori challenged the process and eventually settled commercial claims in 1992 with the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi Settlement Deed.

“Māori non-commercial interests in fishing, both customary and recreational, are still affected today by the lack of fish in the water. When Māori are fishing to feed the whānau this is classified as recreational fishing. Research shows that 52% of Māori who fish in the sea say they rely on fishing to feed their families, compared with 27% of the adult population overall.

“Having access to abundant fish stocks is fundamental in providing for both Māori and the public’s interests in fisheries. However, often as not the pathways to abundance are blocked by quota owners wielding so much influence over fisheries management and marine protection matters.”

In his role as LegaSea support and alignment specialist, Macindoe has frequent conversations with people who are frustrated by their inability to have an area set aside for conservation, to remove the indiscriminate and destructive bottom trawling and dredging from our sensitive and highly productive inshore zones or to simply have excessive catch allocations reduced.

“Just 10 entities own 78% of all quota shares today. New Zealand is being held to ransom by a handful of organisations clinging to the status quo. They are dominating the management processes at a great cost to all New Zealanders.

“If we want a future where fisheries are restored to abundance, the QMS has to go.”

The Quota Management System: the sustainable depletion of our fish stocks

100 entities own 90% of all quota shares.
Over 90% of all fish caught in New Zealand waters is harvested by commercial fishers.
400,000 tonnes of total allowable catch recorded per year is taken commercially.
Just 3% of total allowable catch from New Zealand waters is due to recreational fishing.
Thousands of tonnes of fish are exported for less than $3 per kilo, with no added value to New Zealand.
‘Sustainable’ catch limits defined as 20% of original biomass when 40% is the management default (with a few exceptions in the Fisheries Act).
As at 2019, 56% of the targeted fish stocks are NOT scientifically assessed.

Low impact fisheries in protected areas

Anyone fishing from shore knows that it’s a tough gig. So many elements such as the tide, wind, and swell have to be right before you even get your line wet. As fish stocks decline so do your chances of success.

Some days it comes down to a choice between buying burley to increase your prospects, or just going to the local shop and buying what you can then sharing that amongst the whanau. Where have we gone wrong?

The Bay of Plenty was originally named by Captain Cook because it was teeming with fish. Nowadays it is home to a depleted stock of snapper, crayfish have been over fished and have retreated to a few hidey holes, and the legendary kahawai boil-ups just off the beach are a mere memory.

A large proportion of New Zealanders, from Auckland, the mid north and Waikato, all have access to the Hauraki Gulf yet fish populations are relatively healthy when compared to other areas. One of the reasons is that Danish seining and trawling are banned in the inner Gulf.

Industrial fishing and more than 30 years of the Quota Management System has taken its toll, not only on our coastal fish, but also the environment they live in. Industrial fishing includes trawling, Danish seining and dredging.

Bottom trawling is generally an efficient, least cost means of harvesting a range of fish species, but we have collectively paid the price for its widespread use. A century of heavy, bottom contact mobile gear has transformed the sea floor from a diverse thriving benthic community of organisms into a desert-like landscape.

In the clear sandy expanses of the Bay of Plenty and Hawke Bay trawling is the main commercial method. Trawling has removed most of the three dimensional structure and organisms that shelter and support life underwater.

As fishing becomes harder it is no wonder more attention is being paid to what is happening just offshore and comparing that to the Hauraki Gulf.

Thriving fisheries
LegaSea has been promoting a ban on industrial fishing in the inshore zone to help rebuild depleted fish stocks and return the marine environment to a more productive ecosystem. That is because prior to industrial fishing the inshore zone was highly productive, providing refuge and nursery areas for dozens of species and supporting marine diversity through layers of ecosystem services.

The proposal to prohibit industrial fishing inshore, within 12 miles of the coast, is not about banning commercial fishing. It’s about excluding industrial fishing from inshore waters. This would create a coastal zone where low-impact commercial fishing, customary Maori and recreational fishing can co-exist.

More productive local fisheries would enable coastal communities and businesses to rebuild through expanding employment and trading opportunities. It would also encourage more innovation for small-scale artisanal commercial fishing. New Zealand must get better value from the fish we harvest. We also have international obligations and a duty of care to future generations to better protect our marine environment and biodiversity. We must start the rebuild process now.