
In case you missed our email last week, here’s the situation in a nutshell: The commercial fishing industry has successfully put pressure on Fisheries New Zealand to propose an increase to the Total Allowable Commercial Catch (TACC) for rock lobster in CRA 2 (Te Arai Point down to East Cape). Fisheries NZ are now proposing to increase commercial catch limits across CRA 2 whilst at the same time, proposing to close the inner Hauraki Gulf – an area that’s already heavily depleted of crayfish. It’s a strategy designed to create the illusion of conservation while ignoring ongoing overfishing elsewhere – failing to address why crayfish stocks are in such dire straits to begin with.
HAVE YOUR SAY NOW! It only takes a few minutes.
The good news – a massive thank you to everyone who has already submitted. So far, over 1,500 of you have sent in your submission. This is great! But we still need more voices. If you haven’t added your voice yet, please do so now to help protect our kōura. The deadline for submissions is 5 PM tomorrow (Wednesday 29th).
Your submission is important because in the past, when we’ve collected submissions via a form, agencies have often lumped them together as a single submission because they looked similar. This time, we’re making every effort to ensure each submission is recognised as unique, and we encourage you to add your personal comments to help that process.
Finally, let’s be clear: closing an already depleted area will not magically bring back the crayfish. Without addressing the root causes – like unsustainable catch limits, a lack of ecosystem-based management, and reduced commercial pressures – we’re only kicking the can down the road. If you want to see future generations enjoy these incredible creatures, now is the time to speak up for crayfish.
Thank you again for standing with us. If you haven’t yet submitted, please take two minutes to do it now – every single submission counts in safeguarding our marine treasures.
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