The views expressed in this post are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any organizations, groups, or individuals I am affiliated with.
Credit: Gareth Cooke / Project Kahurangi
I’ve lived in Auckland my entire life. Tīkapa Moana, the Hauraki Gulf, the crown jewel of Auckland, has been my backyard for over 30 years. I’ve been blessed to enjoy this marine playground in many different ways, including ocean swimming, fishing, sailing, spearfishing, kayaking, and general adventuring. The Hauraki Gulf has given me many incredible memories over my relatively short lifetime – memories that wouldn’t be out of place in a David Attenborough documentary. I’ve swum with manta rays, watched fish carve through bioluminescence, dived through bait balls, and treaded water next to hundreds of bombing gannets.
Over my life, I’ve also witnessed the degradation of the Hauraki Gulf. I’ve seen the kina barrens surrounding many of the islands of the Gulf, mowing down what was once thick kelp forests. I’ve breathed in the sediment in the water, barely able to see my own hand while swimming around many of the beaches that surround Auckland City. I’ve seen the decline in fish life.
It wasn’t always this way.
Sue Neureuter, whose family are the custodians of the Noises, has talked about how her dad would catch kingfish off the shore of the Noises using only an orange peel for bait. Last year, I met with Peter Blackwell, a descendant of one of the founding families of Great Barrier Island, who shared stories about using a shotgun from the rocks to shoot snapper for dinner. Once upon a time, you could pluck crayfish from the waters of Herne Bay. This all seems like fantasy compared to what we see now in the Hauraki Gulf.
Credit: Gareth Cooke / Project Kahurangi
But I’ve seen abundance like this in other parts of New Zealand: waters rich with life, teeming with fish of all different shapes and sizes, clear as the sharpest crystal. Is it so unusual to dream that this same abundance could be achieved in the Hauraki Gulf once again?
In May 2023, I swam from Great Barrier Island back to Auckland to bring awareness to the plight of the Hauraki Gulf. It was a brutal 99-kilometre swim, undertaken in conjunction with the Live Ocean Foundation, ending in 25-knot winds and two-metre waves. I pushed myself to the edge of my limits over those two days, but it was worth it. I was, and remain, deeply impassioned about this cause. It was my small contribution to a mission to increase marine protection in the Hauraki Gulf, building on the hard mahi by many in mana whenua, government, local communities and interest groups to drive positive change.
Credit: Joshua McCormack
Later that same year, in August 2023, the government announced that the Hauraki Gulf Marine Protection Bill would be introduced into Parliament. This news came just two days before I attended an event hosted by the Hauraki Gulf Forum to present the latest State of the Gulf report. The report made for grim reading, but the event was tinged with optimism. There was finally the promise of action. In the words of James Frankham, editor of New Zealand Geographic, we had "a toe on the start line."
The Bill went through its first reading in Parliament (as a point of interest, my name came up during this reading). It was then passed unanimously through the Select Committee, a tried and tested part of New Zealand’s law-making process, earlier this year. The move was widely applauded. Twelve new high-protection areas, or Type 1 Marine Protected Areas, would be introduced, increasing the high-protection coverage to 6.3% of the Hauraki Gulf – up from the existing and frankly woeful 0.3%.
In October of this year, just one month ago, the Minister of Conservation announced that Cabinet had agreed to pass the Hauraki Gulf Marine Protection Bill into law, but with an important caveat. The Bill would include amendments, allowing commercial fishing in two of the so-called high-protection areas – specifically, around Kawau Island and Motutapu. This would be limited to a type of fishing known as ring-net fishing, only to a small number of commercial fishing outfits and only between March and August. Many, including myself, were left scratching their heads. Is it a high-protection area, or is it not? Allowing fishing in a high-protection area, by definition, means that it is not a high-protection area.
Credit: Gareth Cooke / Project Kahurangi
More recently, an investigative article by NZ Herald journalist Michael Morrah has revealed that, prior to the October announcement, the Minister of Conservation was allegedly advised by policy experts from the Department of Conservation not to allow ring-net fishing in these two high-protection areas; they warned it would “undermine biodiversity outcomes.” This guidance was evidently outweighed by the request from the industry lobby group Seafood New Zealand to permit commercial fishing in these same areas.
The response to the October announcement has been mixed. Some groups, such as the Environmental Defence Society, have argued that “perfect can be the enemy of good” – in other words, accept what is given and continue the fight another day. Others have called the decision “unconscionable” and “utterly spineless”. My own thoughts have fallen somewhere between the two.
Marine protection is absolutely necessary to begin reversing the damage caused to the Hauraki Gulf by human activity. Perhaps something is better than nothing; every year without action is another year the downward spiral continues. On the other hand, I feel deep frustration at what is, for all appearances, a decision made to favour a small but powerful commercial interest group. To the outside observer, it seems that a just process has not been followed. There is no Select Committee recommendation to permit this ring-net fishing. From the outside, it appears to be no more than a deal made to placate lobbyists.
As the Live Ocean Foundation stated in an earlier press release, the amendment “sets an incredibly dangerous precedent for marine protection” – a precedent that could allow fishing permits in existing or future high-protection areas. This is not high protection; it is the most abundant, unhampered fishing that these commercial fishermen could dream of. I couldn’t think how this level of protection would allow for any form of meaningful restoration.
Credit: Gareth Cooke / Project Kahurangi
I welcome the new high-protection areas. They are a much-needed start. But as an Aucklander and a New Zealander, I am genuinely concerned about what this recent proposed amendment means for the future of our ocean space. Soft concessions are concessions nonetheless. Short-term extraction cannot come at the expense of long-term ocean health.
This isn’t about me, and it's not about you; it’s about our children, their children, and the generations to come. We need to think further ahead. We need to be bold.
Despite how it may sound, this post isn’t intended to be a political jab. I’m really not interested in taking sides, and you’d probably be surprised to know who I voted for in the last election. What I do care about is the long-term environmental sustainability of our country. In New Zealand, we protect 30% of our land, and have done so for many years. It’s something that most New Zealanders are extremely proud of. It’s time that the ocean receives its fair share of protection as well.
If any of this struck a chord with you, please write a letter to your local MP to make your voice known. It is the role of MPs to represent the voice of the people.
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