A strategy for managing New Zealand's recreational fisheries is urgently needed to avoid further restrictions, a think tank says.
Current bans on recreational fishing - such as the ban on blue cod and scallop fishing in the Marlborough Sounds - are an indication the government needs to better manage recreational fisheries, according to the latest study from the New Zealand Initiative.
The report - authored by Randall Bess - makes a number of key recommendations for how recreational fishing should be managed in the future.
Its key advice is to develop a recreational fisheries policy within the Ministry of Primary Industries.
"Successive governments did not invest much in recreational fisheries nor did they address the tough issues confronting shared fisheries, where the fishing sectors have a shared interest in the taking of a fish stock," Dr Bess said.
He also proposed adopting the Western Australian model where recreational fisheries pay license fees to support funding of representation and research for the sector.
More research was important as there was not enough information available about recreational fishing stocks, he said.
"It is difficult to tell whether the management measures in place are effective in ensuring a sustainable fishery that can meet all fishing sectors' long-term interests. We know some fish stocks are overfished and need to be rebuilt."
The report also found strong support from the public for the recommendations, with 73 per cent of the 186 members surveyed agreeing the management of recreational fisheries should be reformed.
The draft recommendations are the third in a series of New Zealand Initiative fisheries reports and were launched at a panel discussion in Wellington on Monday evening.
KEY RECOMMENDATIONS:
- Improving representation of recreational fishing interests by developing an institution that is the central reference point for all recreational sector issues.
-Developing a recreational fisheries policy using a shared fisheries model, which recognises inter-sectoral conflicts over fisheries.
- Use a petrol excise duty paid by recreational boat users to fund the recreational fishing institution.
-Design indicators of stock management performance that can be tracked over time. For example satisfaction of the non-commercial fishing experience.
-Reach agreed targets for shared fisheries.
- NZN