About 70 people gathered in the Raglan Town Hall Supper Room on Wednesday evening (24.10.12) for the first meeting in a review of the Maui Dolphin Threat Management Plan. Three film crews were also there to capture the discussion. The meeting organised by the Department of Conservation and the Ministry of Primary Industries was to obtain public input into the review and explain the submission process.
The meeting was opened by Matt Cook, Waikato Area Manager for DOC who told the meeting that the population of Maui Dolphin is estimated to be about 49 and that the population has less than 100 for several years. Fifty is considered to be the minimum number for a viable population. It appears that the annual decline is at about 3% ( 1 or 2 each year) and the apparent larger decline is due to use different analysis methods.
The officials said that the decline was caused by several factors: pollution, set net fishing, boat operations and that other factors such as deep-sea mining need to be looked at. Speakers from the floor called for immediate action and various people stated their view on the specific causes for the decline. Calls for action included establishing a marine reserve near Raglan, banning set nets to allow the Hector and Maui dolphin habitat areas to be linked, stopping farm run-off and having observers on all trawlers.
Some people at the meeting found the scientific evidence difficult to understand and other seemed unaware of the current Maui dolphin protection measures. Most people agreed that the population was at a critical level and that something needed to be done now.
Sheryl Hart pointed out that set net and gill net fishing bans were already in place in the coastal area south from the Kaipara out to 12 nautical miles- known habitat of the Maui dolphin. She called on the MFI to honour the promise they had made in 2007 to put observers on all trawlers working in the area and to rigorously prosecute offenders. MFI staff present seemed unaware that their organisation had made this commitment in 2007. They said they were working to get observers on all boats, but this had not been achieved so far.
The public can make submissions on the TMP to the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) or the Department of Conservation (DOC) until 12 November.
MPI and DOC ran a formal risk assessment process with a group of scientific specialists in June, the results of which have been fed into the review of the TMP.
For more information, or to make a submission, visit www.doc.govt.nz/mauisconsultation or http://www.fish.govt.nz/en-nz/Consultations/Hector+and+Mauis+Dolphins+Threat+Management+Plan/default.htm.
Help save Raglan’s own Maui Dolphin – make your submission today.
Thanks for the detailed coverage of the event. We at Whaingaroa Environment Centre were very pleased to see such a large turnout. It does show that this community cares!
Throughout the back and forth between frustrated locals and the public servants that came to represent DOC and MFI, DOC’s Tara Ross-Watt consistently put out his answer to all our calls to action. His statement was, DOC wants to save the Maui’s, we need your help to do it. Stand behind us. Make a submission.
Please come into WEC at the Town Hall if you have any questions about submissions. We will be running a submissions workshop on Wednesday Nov 7th @ 5pm. Please watch this space for more info..
Glad to help. This is important.
Thanks Rodgher. Just to make a correction. We have scheduled the Maui’s Dolphin Submissions workshop to coincide with an info evening put on by KASM. Thursday Nov 8th at 5pm, Supper Room. 5 – 6pm Info session with KASM. 6 – 7:30pm Submissions Workshop
One of the threats listed is seabed mining. The government is also consulting on its plans to make mining easier. Hopefully that will also be covered by KASM and WEC, but an easy way to submit on it is at http://www.greens.org.nz/takeaction/submissionguides/have-your-say-mining-legislation-new-zealand.