Government gets Warning on Trout Import Issue

Retiring president of the New Zealand Federation of Freshwater Anglers, Jim Hale at the organisation's annual meeting and conference in Christchurch last month, gave government a warning not to back off its promise over fighting proposals to import Canadian farmed trout.

Jim Hale said Labour should stand by the pledge of cabinet minister Jim Sutton who said ‘all Labour members' supported the 'Mark Burton Bill' strengthening the ban on selling trout. The Federation of Freshwater Anglers would not stand quietly by if there was any attempt to depart from the assurance he said.

Jim Hale, a Manawatu dairy farmer had strong words for Federated Farmers who were vociferous over border controls to do with mad cow and foot and mouth diseases but were disinterested in the likelihood of disease being introduced in farmed trout imports. 'It appears Federated Farmers are prepared to sacrifice New Zealand's wild trout for their own trading purposes and the Federation of Freshwater Anglers will not for an instant, wear that,' he said.

He called on anglers throughout the country to rise and fight threats such as the trout import proposal. However regardless of the effort the Federation made to combat threats to the public's trout fishing, there was an air of apathy amongst most. 'We never really seem to awaken the sleeping giant of 160,000 trout anglers in New Zealand,' he said.

Jim Hale described New Zealand's trout fishing as a national icon that should be protected for the present and future generations. Dealing with threats in total, Jim Hale said many of the old issues such as Queens chain, exclusive access for guiding interests, tradeable water rights and others were still there and with new ones such, as trout importation, genetic engineering, DoC's disinterest in backcountry huts and tracks and water extraction adding to the list. 'The list just keeps growing. When is this pressure going to stop?' he asked.

Jim Hale retired as president and Alan McMillan of Dunedin succeeded him as president.

The executive for the coming year is:

North Island: Strato Cotslinis (Wellington), Brian Lowe Napier), Tom Johnston (New Plymouth), Robert Shirkey (Napier), Mike Baty (Auckland).

South Island: Russell McKendry (Golden Bay), Roland Jaspers (Christchurch), Tony Orman (Marlborough), lan Cole (Wanaka)

Secretary; Dave Fitton (Dunedin), Treasurer Sonia lrain-Paterson (Wellington), Research Officer Ken Sims (Manawatu).

Southern Fishing and Boating - May 2001