16 Boating New Zealand
F
orest & Bird has released details of a letter
from fishing industry leaders to the Ministry
of Primary Industries (MPI) seeking to
prevent the public from seeing images
of by-kill and discarded fish. The letter – and
accompanying images – was released through
the Official Information Act (OIA).
In July last year a number of commercial
fishing organisations wrote to MPI seeking a
change to the Fisheries Act to prevent the public
release of information collected by MPI about
fisheries activities.
The letter, sent by George Clement of the
Deepwater Group; Dr Jeremy Helson from
Fisheries Inshore New Zealand; Storm Stanley
from the Paua Industry Council, Tim Pankhurst
from Seafood New Zealand and Daryl Sykes from
the New Zealand Rock Lobster Industry Council,
suggested that “the Fisheries Act be amended
to clarify the purposes for which the [electronic
monitoring] information (and other information
on commercial fishing activities) will be obtained
by MPI and to expressly provide for the OIA to not
apply to this information.”
The letter also adds that the release of footage
of what is described as “incidental interactions
with seabirds, legitimate fish discards, treatment of
unintended bycatch” could make “New Zealand’s
international reputation as a reputable source of
quality, sustainably-produced seafood could be
significantly impaired.”
“In plain English,” says Forest & Bird CE Kevin
Hague, “they are saying that catching endangered
penguins, dumping entire hauls of fish overboard
and killing Hector’s dolphins looks really bad on
TV. Well, the solution is to stop doing it, not to hide
the evidence. It’s hard to think of a more credibility
damaging activity than trying to change the law
so the rest of us can’t see what’s really happening
out there.
“Commercial fishing is one of the most
poorly-regulated industries in New Zealand, and
one of the least transparent. New Zealanders
were shocked by the Operation Achilles cover up,
where illegal fish dumping and non-reporting of
Hector’s dolphin by-kill only came to light through
leaked information and persistent investigative
journalism.”
The letter also states, “Such information,BOATWORLDBOATWORLDBOATWORLDBOATWORLD
IMAGES
YOU
WEREN’T
MEANT
TO SEE
Commercial fishing is one
of the most poorly-regulated
industries in New Zealand, and
one of the least transparent.if it were to be selectively compiled into short
succinct soundbites/videos by biased editing, would
provide those opposed to commercial fishing
or to government with a powerful tool for their
propaganda.”
“Commercial fishing is vulnerable to criticism,
not because it’s being misrepresented by media
or environmental advocates, but because New
Zealanders are shocked by what the fishing industry
has got away with,” says Hague.
Although much of the letter was framed in terms
of protecting privacy and commercial sensitivity, the
Official Information Act already protects privacy and
commercial sensitivity and has done so since 1982,
something the Ombudsman’s Office confirmed
to MPI in a briefing paper released at the same
time. MPI already has stringent guidelines over the
release of fisheries information.