New Zealand Sport Fishing Council > Fisheries > Marine protection > MPAs and marine reserves > Marine Protected Areas Act review 2016

Marine Protected Areas Act review 2016

Introduction

On 12 January 2016 the Government released a consultation document: A New Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Act, with the aim of providing a better system of marine protected areas in the Territorial Sea, from the coastline out to the 12 nautical mile limit.

Four types of MPAs are proposed:

  • Marine reserves
  • Species specific sanctuaries
  • Seabed reserves
  • Recreational fishing parks, one each in the Hauraki Gulf and Marlborough Sounds.

The existing Marine Reserves Act (1977) would be repealed and replaced with the new Marine Protected Areas Act. This Act would enable different protection measures to be applied in the same area ie. a species sanctuary could be established in a recreational fishing park.

Submission deadline is 11 March 2016.

NZSFC views

The New Zealand Sport Fishing Council advise recreational fishers to be cautious in their support for recreational fishing parks because there will be trade-offs and strings attached.

The Council has provided an initial analysis and a preliminary view of the proposals, as below.

As you will appreciate, the more we learn about this process the more our thinking develops. The following list tries to capture the process in detail.

Curious proposals to protect marine areas. LegaSea. 20 Mar 2016

Recent Government proposals to create recreational fishing parks in the Hauraki Gulf and Marlborough Sounds are curious. LegaSea article. 20 March 2016

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MPA review submission. NZSFC. 11 Mar 2016

Submission in support of a more integrated approach to marine protection in New Zealand. Submission by the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council. 11 March 2016.

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MPA review submission. Wellington RFA. 10 Mar 2016

Submission in support of extending the scope of the new Marine Protected Areas Act to require councils to obtain marine knowledge. Submission by the Wellington Recreational Marine Fishers Association. 10 March 2016.

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Are recreational fishing parks affordable? LegaSea. 12 Feb 2016

A recreational fishing park has been proposed for the Hauraki Gulf and Marlborough Sounds. We need to test if it is affordable. LegaSea article. 12 February 2016.

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Are recreational fishing parks the answer? LegaSea. 11 Feb 2016

A document discussing 4 types of marine protected areas including recreational fishing parks has been released for consultation. LegaSea article. 11 February 2016.

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MPA review. Preliminary view. NZSFC. Jan 2016

Initial analysis of the Marine Protected Areas Act proposals released by the Government in January 2016. Preliminary view by the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council. January 2016.

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MPA review consultation document. NZ Govt. 12 Jan 2016

Consultation document: A new Marine Protected Areas Act, aimed at better provision of marine protected areas in inshore waters. Submissions due by 11 March. Released by the NZ Government 12 January 2016.

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Biodiversity convention. United Nations. 1992

NZ is one of 193 parties to the United Nation’s Convention on Biological Diversity. This Convention is legally binding. Article 8 (on page 8) outlines the need for a network of MPAs to conserve biological diversity. 1992.

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