A more detailed image of the Motiti Protection Areas. Image / Supplied
A Bay of Plenty MP critical of an Environment Court decision on Motiti Island's newly protected marine areas says the public was shut out of having a voice and he is now considering potential changes to legislation to prevent such a thing happening again.
Todd Muller, who serves as MP for the Bay as well as agriculture spokesman for the National Party, said he was disappointed in a decision to create three protected marine areas where fishing or the collection of marine life was now banned.
However, those who have long fought for the decision say the public have always had the chance to be involved through the country's judicial system.
The Environment Court decision, released on Friday, comes after five years of complex legal arguments involving the Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Fisheries New Zealand (also known as Ministry for Primary Industries), tangata whenua and other stakeholders such as Forest and Bird.
The regional council said the case was unique and complex so there had been no specific public consultation. The first opportunity for the public to influence the new rules will be when the Regional Coastal Environment Plan is reviewed in 2029.
The process was sparked by the 2011 grounding of Rena on Astrolabe Reef, also known as Otaiti, a popular fishing spot and revered spiritual ancestor to Māori. Whether regional councils can control fishing through regional plans had been earlier tested in the High Court and Court of Appeal.
Muller said such a decision should lie with Fisheries New Zealand, not the regional council. He was also "particularly concerned" at a lack of public input.
"There is almost no involvement at all from recreational fishers. This has been largely behind closed doors. This has not been delivered as an issue that affects the public."
The National Party set up a petition last year to stop the fishing ban and redivert the authority overseeing such decisions to Fisheries New Zealand.
However, petitions and opinions from the public are not necessarily included during a court process.
Muller is now considering whether legislation needs changing to make it clearer what jurisdiction Fisheries New Zealand should have.
"I'm not saying that's what the National Party will do but as agriculture spokesperson, that's something I'm going to look into very closely.
"As Parliament, we decide whether there has to be further clarification to changing the law."
Trust technical adviser Te Atarangi Sayers acknowledged Muller's concerns but said the protection of biodiversity, habitat, culture and landscape values were appropriately managed by regional councils through the Resource Management Act (RMA).
The courts decided regional councils were the correct authority that have local knowledge and context of the resources and the ability to monitor change at regional scales, he said.
Sayers said there had been public consultation at the beginning of the planning process in 2015. Since then, the public voice was represented by the regional council and Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI).
As part of the New Zealand court process, any interested party could have joined at any time, he said.
"This is the last chapter in a long journey to protecting and preserving the taonga moana of our shared rohe and coastal marine area. We are generally pleased that some protection will be in place and the recognition of the significant values will be preserved by this decision.
"We have highlighted that we as community can now ask for our coastal marine area to be protected. It is now for community to support what that protection will look like.
"We all need to support a resilient and abundant marine space for our mokopuna and the future generations of New Zealanders together."
Forest and Bird chief executive Kevin Hague said Tauranga was overfished and had a degraded marine environment yet it had little protection.
The organisation had fought for five years for the regional council to use the RMA to protect the coastal marine environment.
The decision was "a good start" and the protected areas were the first of their kind made under the RMA, Hague said.
He said protected areas such as these made less than 1 per cent of the total Bay of Plenty inshore waters.
"Yes, fishers will have to change their fishing spots, but they will notice the benefit in only a few years."
The Motiti Protected Areas were confirmed through the courts as culturally and ecologically significant and they were "the best places for protection to achieve a rebuild of a healthy marine environment for Tauranga".
Buddy Mikaere, who spoke for Motiti Island residents during the Rena aftermath, said he was pleased with the decision.
"The area took a big hit with Rena. It's good to have the establishment of this area to allow it to revitalise."
Bay of Plenty Regional Council's Sarah Omundsen acknowledged this had been a "really different process" to what the community was familiar with.
"However, the Court of Appeal decision found that regional councils do have jurisdiction to control the taking of fish under the Resource Management Act, provided this is for marine indigenous biodiversity purposes and not for a Fisheries Act purpose."
Friday's Environment Court decision addressed managing imbalance in marine indigenous biodiversity in those areas around Motiti Island and the regional council was working to incorporate this through rules in its Regional Coastal Environment Plan.
Bay of Plenty Regional Council chief executive Fiona McTavish said this week they understood the reefs were important to the fishing community but the result was a good one for the marine environment.
"We are committed to providing clarity around what the outcome of this complex legal case means for our community and will be working with all stakeholders to make sure the new rules are well understood."
The regional council is preparing the amendments directed by the Environment Court for final confirmation. Once confirmed, the regional council will update its Coastal Environment Plan to include the new provisions.
These amendments will then be sent to the Minister of Conservation for approval. Once approved, the changes will be publicly notified and the rules will become operative and enforceable.
It is therefore expected to take a number of months before the rules are implemented.
The three Motiti Protection Areas within Motiti Natural Environment Management Area are: Motiti Protection Area 1 Coastal Marine Area Otaiti (Astrolabe Reef), Te Porotiti, o Karapu and Te Papa (also known as Brewis Shoals); Motiti Protection Area 2 Coastal marine area around Motunau (also known as Plate Island) and Motiti Protection Area 3 Coastal marine area around Motuhaku (also known as Schooner Rocks or Schooner Island).
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