The Ministry for Primary Industries is proposing to extend a ban on taking blackfoot pāua along a large section of Hawke’s Bay coastline, including the popular Waimārama and Ocean beaches. It’s a move supported by the Kahungunu hapū of Waimārama, with chairman Bayden Barber saying a
Hawke’s Bay’s pāua problem: One beach faces a six-year ban, another is being ‘hammered’ - is it time for a wider rāhui?
A proposed extension to a ban on gathering blackfoot pāua along the Waimārama coast is open for submissions to MPI after Bayden Barber's local hapū requested it continue. Photo / Warren Buckland
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“Of the 60 pāua at the spot we went to a couple of weekends ago, there was not one at the legal size limit. A couple were close, but nothing over 125mm.”
Barber said there were many reasons for extending the closure, including the start of a new monitoring scheme and expert advice from Niwa and others post-Cyclone Gabrielle about the impact reopening would have.
“[The scheme] will take all of two years. You can only do it in certain tides and times during summer,” he said.
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“We’ve also had some presentations from Niwa and others post-Cyclone Gabrielle, and they outlined the impact silt had on our inshore reefs. The next two years will give us more time to look properly into the reasons why, but at the moment they’re not flourishing as we’d hoped after four years.
“The pāua are kind of like humans. They flourish where there is plenty of food, so Cyclone Gabrielle had a huge impact on our fisheries, especially with the reefs close to the shore.”
Cautionary tales from the South Island also helped spur the decision to extend, and when they do allow gathering again, it would be carefully planned.
“I was speaking to Mark Solomon from Kaikōura, and they put on a rāhui after the earthquakes. He said when they opened it up, it was the worst thing they did.
“They were totally inundated by people and divers and had to go back to square one,” Barber said.
He said he was aware of the impact on other popular gathering spots in Hawke’s Bay and understood other spots, too, were considering bans.
“I think really it’s a Hawke’s Bay-wide issue from the top to the bottom. I know closing our pāua fishery has put pressure on the Napier fishery Kairakau/Pourerere near Pōrangahau.
He understood Pōrangahau had a hapu rāhui at the moment, but hadn’t made it official through MPI.
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‘Caused havoc’
Pourerere Beach resident and Central Hawke’s Bay district councillor Jerry Greer said it was no secret that beaches along the CHB coast were getting “hammered”, with Pourerere in particular seeing an influx of pāua gatherers since the Waimārama coast ban.
“It started happening post-Covid, really. The word got out that Pourerere was a very good spot for pāua, and access to Pourerere Beach and further to Aramoana was easy.
“The Waimārama rāhui has been on for two years now and it’s caused havoc out there to be quite honest.
“Some days out there, you would see over 100 vehicles out by the reef or around the beaches collecting pāua and other seafood daily during the weekends.”
Greer said if no action were taken to implement a ban, there would eventually be no pāua left to gather.
“Something has to happen. There is a difference of opinion, as some people say there’s plenty of pāua out there, but I can tell you by Christmas, for the average collector near the shore, there will be nothing left.”
Mangakuri, Kairakau and the Te Angiangi Marine Reserve were also seeing plenty of action, with illegal catches being a significant issue, he said.
Greer said he understood why the Waimārama ban was in place and that they were protecting their interests, but he felt it would’ve been a good solution to make the ban wider.
“At the time of the original [Waimārama ban], it would have made sense to shut down the whole stretch.”
According to MPI, Fisheries New Zealand fishery officers have conducted 54 catch inspections this year in the area from Kairakau to Aramoana, which includes Pourerere and Pōrangahau beaches.
Fourteen of those inspections found some non-compliance with the Fisheries Act and regulations – mainly excess or undersize pāua.
Five of these matters are either before the court or being prepared for court. The other nine matters resulted in infringement notices and warnings.
Plans in place
MPI director of fisheries management for Fisheries New Zealand Emma Taylor said one other temporary MPI-enforced closure was in place in the Hawke’s Bay region. It is off Bluff Hill in Napier and will remain in place until June 21.
Mana Whenua hapū of Ahuriri, Mana Ahuriri Trust and Maungaharuru Tangitu Trust requested this temporary closure. She also noted that hapū of Pourerere were in touch about finding solutions to their concerns.
“We have been contacted about a temporary closure for Pourerere Beach, and we understand that an application for this will be submitted soon.
“This request will go through a public consultation before a decision is made by the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries.”
Taylor said communities in areas with concerns about the health of their fisheries were welcome to contact MPI to learn more about the management tools available, including temporary closures.
“Consultation on the proposed [Waimārama] temporary closure is under way and we encourage anyone with an interest to make a submission by 5pm on November 11, which is when the consultation closes.
“As part of our process, following the consultation we will provide Ngāi Hapū with a summary of the submissions for their feedback. We will then prepare advice for the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries to help inform his decision.”
The state of our fisheries
Pāua Industry Council Ltd scientist Tom McCowan said closures such as the one in Waimārama were becoming more common.
While the organisation – a national body that represents the interests of stakeholders in the commercial pāua fishery – couldn’t comment specifically on the Waimārama closure, McCowan said he could give general insight into the state of fisheries.
“Fisheries Act S.186 customary temporary closures are increasingly common. They have a two-year term but may be rolled over by application to the minister,” he said.
“The evidence that they are an effective management tool is scarce, and ongoing rollovers are routine. Kaikōura, for example (Wakatu Quay), has one in place since 2008. Their main value is to buy time to implement more permanent fisheries management fixes.”
He noted that if there were a lot of closures, this could lead to sustainability issues.
“Most of the S.186B closures in the North Island are in response to localised overharvesting by amateur fishers and the failure by government to manage that.
“A good example is the current Taranaki closure application where there has also never been a commercial fishery. So the impacts of closures are probably more on amateur fishers, simply due to where the closures are placed.”
When looking at the science, McCowan said experts saw climate change effects in a few areas, such as the Nelson-Marlborough area.
“The main impact we think comes from increasing frequency and magnitude of marine heatwaves combined with the long-term effect of ocean warming as well as other environmental impacts such as sedimentation.
“These changing environmental impacts can have direct adverse effects on the pāua themselves, as well as their ecosystems such as kelps.”
More information, including the application and how to make a submission on the Waimārama ban, can be found on MPI’s website: https://www.mpi.govt.nz/consultations/further-temporary-closure-of-waimarama-hawkes-bay-for-the-taking-of-blackfoot-paua/
Mitchell Hageman joined Hawke’s Bay Today in January 2023. From his Napier base, he writes regularly on social issues, arts and culture, and the community
