From 1 October 2014, shark finning in NZ will be illegal. It is important to note that finning means removing the fins from any shark and discarding the body of the shark at sea.
For key inshore and HMS species, fins can still be removed at sea but the trunk must also be landed in accordance with a gazetted fin to greenweight ratio. The ratio means that the weight of fins landed will be compared to the greenweight of the shark landed. For example, if a shark is landed that weighs 100 kg and the gazetted ratio is 3.50, the fins landed must not weigh more than 3.5 kg (the ratios will be applied by species on a trip-by-trip basis). FINZ will continue to work with MPI on setting and implementing these ratios and other operational aspects of the ban on shark finning. There will also be a legal requirement that fins are separately stored and landed by species. The ratio system applies to: elephant fish, dark and pale ghost shark, mako shark, porbeagle shark, rig and school shark.
In contrast, the ban requires all shark fins to be landed attached to the body for all non-QMS species and two QMS species (spiny dogfish and blue shark). In most cases, limited processing will be allowed (e.g. removal of the head and gut) but the fins will still need to be attached to the body through some portion of uncut skin. For blue sharks, fishers will be allowed to remove the fins completely during processing but the fins must be stored and landed attached to the body of the shark (e.g. by being tied or sewn on).
Three sharks will also be added to the 6th Schedule. Mako, porbeagle and blue sharks will be able to be returned to the sea, alive or dead. Live releases must be reported using destination code “X” but are not required to be balanced with ACE. Dead returns must be balanced with ACE and reported under a new destination code “Z”.
Removing the fin from a shark while it is alive remains an offence under the Animal Welfare Act.
Approach
Species
Schedule 6
Fin to trunk ratio
Elephantfish
Ghost shark
Mako shark
Pale ghost shark
Porbeagle shark
Rig
School shark
Mako shark
Porbeagle shark
Blue shark
(Live releases do not require ACE, dead sharks must be balanced with ACE).
The Ministry manages Bluenose (BNS) as one biological stock. While each Quota Management Area has its own TACC, any change in annual catch entitlement, up-or-down, is shared across all areas. This means that BNS work that Fisheries Inshore has initiated on behalf of quota owners needs to have a national focus – regional differences are important but a national ‘one-stock’ strategy is essential.
BNS fishers and quota owners met yesterday in Wellington. Fishers were optimistic that in many areas catch rates were increasing. The good news is that this upward trend is also showing through in the updated CPUE index commissioned by Fisheries Inshore. Excellent.
Thursday’s meeting was twofold. We debated
what would our management strategy be for the next five years; including how TACCs should be set, and
what science are we prepared to buy to support this approach, and to improve information for the future.
Much of Thursday’s discussion focussed on whether fishers wanted a status quo model with infrequent TACC changes – potentially doing little while the fishery rebuilds - or did we want a more responsive TACC that moved with CPUE?
Some fishers argued for a TACC flat line of 1,110 tonnes for the next five years. They said they needed certainty but still accepted that if CPUE fell too much then TACC should be cut. Others questioned whether over-catching would become an issue and argued for a responsive TACC built on a series of management procedures. All agreed that we needed to continue to work collaboratively on the catch sampling which is managed for Fisheries Inshore by Trident Systems.
Over the next couple of weeks Fisheries Inshore will work up scenarios for management procedures including both a capped and more responsive TACC, and considering performance against management targets and different re-build timeframes.
To the question Radio NZ posed to Mark Ngata of Ngati Porou Seafoods on recreational fishers he said, all sectors needed to accurately report their catch. Good management needed good data. Everyone who fishes has a responsibility to report where and what they caught.
