Option 4 Adopted

At the recent AGM in Gisborne over the 29th and 30th of September, the New Zealand Big Game Fishing Council (NZBGFC) voted unanimously to accept and support the Option 4 principles as presented in response to the Soundings discussion document.

A joint working group made up of representatives from the Recreational Fishing Council (RFC) and the Ministry of Fisheries put the Soundings document together. It was designed to promote discussion about the future management of our recreational fishery stocks. A clear mandate needed to be adopted by the NZBGFC following the meeting, as government submissions close on November 30, 2000 and the AGM was the last forum in which Soundings could be debated.

Club delegates from around the country agreed that the Soundings Document was inadequate in its ability to protect the publics right to fish and gather seafood. It didn’t go far enough in redefining recreational rights over commercial operators as presented in the 1989 National Policy for Marine Recreational Fisheries. Despite the policies clear statement giving recreational anglers priority over commercial operators where stocks don’t permit harvesting by both groups, the non-commercial fishers have never had their position defined in law. The option 4 group finds this unacceptable and presented the following basic principles, which have been adopted as a united mandate.

1. No licensing of recreational fishers.
2. Recreational Priority over Commercial fishers, for free access to a reasonable daily bag limit in legislation.
3. The ability to exclude all commercial operations that deplete recreationally important areas.
4. The ability to devise plans to ensure future generations enjoy the same or better quality of rights while preventing fish conserved for such purposes being given to the commercial sector.

These principles will be presented on behalf of all recreational anglers in NZ and the outcome will become legislation when cabinet decide which direction it will take on March 30, 2001.

The decision will shape the future of recreational fishing in New Zealand. For more information read about Option 4 on their website http://www.option4.co.nz/, and the Soundings document at http://www.fish.govt.nz/.