The launch of the first report on recreational fisheries caused quite a stir. The media sent alarms that decreasing daily bag limits were inevitable, and that we were running out of fish. Also, what cheekiness to blame recreational fishers for fisheries problems; what about the pillaging done by commercial fishers?

These responses were expected given that recreational fishing is an integral aspect of the Kiwi way of life. But, who wants to contemplate it will increasingly come under threat as the population and tourist numbers continue to grow, unless we do things differently?

I appreciated Graeme Sinclair, from Gone Fishin’, confirming our concern regarding the impact on recreational fishing should Auckland’s population double in the next 30 to 40 years. He also confirmed that the burden of responsibility for fisheries problems is complicated, and all fishing sectors should plan for more effective fisheries management.

Terry Williams-King, from The Fishing Show on RadioLive, stated his concern about the wastefulness of both commercial and recreational fishers when discarding and high grading. He stressed the importance of everyone doing their part to fix the problems, and the need to look after what we have.

Terry also stressed the importance of reviewing some recreational fishing rules. He proposed that we do without the minimum legal size for snapper to reduce discarding and high grading, and implement a maximum legal size to protect the large-size breeders that produce the most eggs. He proposed the seven fish daily bag limit should continue in SNA1, and replace the 30 centimetre minimum size limit with a maximum limit of 40 centimetres.

I have repeatedly heard tangata whenua state that protecting large-size breeders, whether finfish or shellfish, is a good sustainable practice. Nevertheless, the Ministry for Primary Industries does not use it. I have been told the reason is to avoid creating markets for small fish, but for whose benefit?

Maximum legal sizes are used in some overseas fisheries. For example, the halibut fishery in British Columbia, Canada, has a recreational maximum legal size of 133 centimetres (head on). The daily bag limit is one per person, and the license restricts each person to six fish for the season.

For the next report, I will travel to the United States, British Columbia, and Australia to research how these nations have addressed similar problems in managing recreational and commercial fisheries – and what we can learn from their experiences.