Lethal North South divide on protection for NZ's rare dolphins

WWF-New Zealand today called on the Government to protect Hector's and Maui's dolphins from net fishing throughout their range to give the rare species their best chance of survival.

The call came as the Government today announced its decision to extend net fishing restrictions for more areas of the critically endangered Maui's dolphins' habitat, whilst allowing commercial set net fishing to go ahead in Hector's dolphins habitat.

Fishing with nets is the main cause of Hector's and Maui's dolphins' decline towards extinction[1], the nets entangle the dolphins and cause them to drown. Since the 1970s, populations of South Island Hector's dolphins have plummeted from around 30,000 to just 7,270 today. Maui's dolphins, which live along the west coast of the North Island, are now the rarest marine dolphins in the world - just 111 are estimated to survive.

WWF-New Zealand's Executive Director Chris Howe welcomed the move to better protect Maui's dolphin and expressed concern at the decision to permit set net fishing in more of Hector's dolphins' habitat: "It's very simple - fishing nets kill dolphins, so the decision to restrict net fishing in more of Maui's habitat is good news for a species on the brink. The government's decision to allow commercial set net fishing along the east coast of the South Island means Hector's dolphins are at greater risk of dying needlessly in fishing nets. For a species that has lost nearly three-quarters of its population in three decades, we need to be pulling out all the stops to help them recover."

He said the government's own research shows the dolphins have the best chance of recovery if all human threats to the dolphins' survival are removed: "The plight of New Zealand's Hector's and Maui's dolphins is a national emergency, and their survival is in our hands," said WWF's Chris Howe. "The science shows they have the best chance recovery if they are protected throughout their range. The Government needs to decide to whether it wants to see the species recover or preside over their decline."

WWF is campaigning for Hector's and Maui's dolphins to be protected adequately from human threats throughout their natural range to allow their numbers to recover to their pre-1970s abundance.

WWF advocates for the Government to develop and implement an effective action plan for the recovery of the species that also identifies, manages and mitigates all other potential threats to Hector's and Maui's to ensure their recovery, such as boat strike, pollution, coastal development and exploration for oil and gas.

Ends

Notes to editors

The Government announced today that Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Phil Heatley has decided:
. To retain the prohibition on commercial fishing using set nets in the area between four and seven nautical miles from the shore on the WCNI
. To provide an exemption to the set net prohibition on the ECSI to allow commercial fishers targeting butterfish to use set nets in a defined area.
The key reasons for these decisions are:
. The Maui's dolphin population is about 111. Given this population, very low levels of mortality caused by people can have a significant impact. The Minister considers that although the risk of mortality from fishing in the four to seven nautical mile area is low, it is not acceptable.
. The Minister considers that there is an acceptable level of risk in terms of mortality from butterfish fishing by commercial fishers on the ECSI given the type of fishing gear they use, the size of the area and the numbers of Hector's dolphins.
Mr Heatley also directed the Ministry to advise him whether an exemption may be warranted for recreational set net fishers targeting butterfish in the same defined area of the ECSI where he granted the commercial exemption. The Ministry will release a consultation document shortly.
For the Minister's decision letter and more information on the restrictions, go to:
http://www.fish.govt.nz/en-nz/Environmental/Hectors+Dolphins/default.htm

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