MPI Fishery officers patrolling around the Kaipara harbour area, caught two men with 138 snapper.
The daily bag limit per person is 10 with a minimum length of 27cm in the West Coast area – where the men were fishing. If fishing on the East Coast the daily bag limit is 7 per person with a minimum length of 30cm.
A Senior Fishery Officer, and an Honorary Fishery Officer were patrolling in the harbour on Saturday (26/3/22). Part of this work includes inspecting the catch of recreational fishers at the boat ramp when they’re coming out of the water.
The men, who were from Auckland had been fishing all day aboard their boat and were stopped at the Ruawai boat ramp which is about 30 kilometres south of Dargaville.
“They’d spent the day fishing and between them had nearly 7 times the legal limit. Just one snapper of their catch was undersize but again – the rules are there for a reason – to protect the resource and ensure sustainability,” says MPI Regional Compliance Manager, Phil Tasker.
All the fish was seized by Ministry for Primary Industries along with the boat the men were fishing from.
And, it’s likely they will be charged under the Fisheries Act, given the large number of fish in their possession.
“The Kaipara harbour is a popular fishing spot. Everyone is entitled to catch a feed – but we would encourage all fishers to understand the rules. Don’t take a gamble as you risk infringement tickets or potentially appearing before the courts.
We can all do our part in looking after our local fishery or fisheries by downloading the NZ Fishing Rules App wherever you get your apps from and protect our kaimoana for future generations,” says Phil Tasker.
If you become aware of any suspicious fishing activity, call MPI on 0800 4 POACHER (0800 47 62 24) or email [email protected].
