KEY POINTS:
Two women who collected more than 2000 cockles from a beach in Manukau have been fined $1800 each and had their vehicles confiscated.
Mangere seamstress Sinai Fonua, 42, and Losaline Elone, 36, a meat packer from Mt Wellington, were caught by fisheries officers at Cockle Bay beach in February.
The women and their three children were collecting cockles, which are limited to 50 a person.
Ministry of Fisheries district compliance manager Ian Bright said the women didn't know how many cockles they were allowed to gather.
"They were still gathering cockles when they were caught and, if they had not been stopped, one can only imagine how many they would eventually have taken off the beach."
After deducting 50 cockles for each of the three children, the women had an excess of 1099 cockles each - nearly 22 times their daily limit.
This amount was considered serious non-commercial offending, which carried a maximum fine of $20,000.
"It is very disappointing to see these two women setting such a bad, greedy and selfish example to the three children they had with them that day," Mr Bright said.
The women's two four-wheel-drive vehicles were confiscated and forfeited to the Crown, he said, which he hoped would send a strong message to anyone else tempted to ignore the limits.
"Our officers regularly patrol the shellfish beds at Cockle Bay and other Auckland beaches and those who blatantly break the rules are likely to be caught and prosecuted."
- NZPA
