FISHERY CONTROL

Hokitika Guardian, 20 January 1937, Page 7

FISHERY CONTROL

DANGER OF DEPLETION. RECENT EXPLOITATION. • The depletion of fish off the New Zealand coasts through human agencies, the lack of detailed knowledge and the need for extensive study of the problems involved to allow adequate control of the situation was stressed by the chief inspector of fisheries, Mr A. E. Hefford, in a paper to the zoology section at Auckland. The history of the world’s fisheries srowed that exploitation had greatly outpaced conservation, said Mr Hefford, who recalled, however, that the Maoris had enforced conservation through the tapu. He outlined the history of fishery regulations in New Zealand with special reference to the schnapper fishing about Auckland. The regulations of 1928 were the first based on a biological basis, but they were a quack remedy to the extent that a full understanding of the conditions that applied was not available. The increase in efficiency of Danish seiners and the fact that Auckland’s export trdae in schnapper had increased 500 per cent since 1930 had made even seine net fishermen wonder whether this degree of exploitation could continue without causing a shortage. Schnapper had so far well maintained their preponderance in the fish fauna of North New Zealand, but this balance had not taken the human predator into account. ' Tt was possible that through ignorance of vital statistics the moment for saving flounder stocks from depletion, in the Haurn.ki Gulf and other waters of the Dominion, had already been missed. Mr Hefford also gave details of the blue cod and hapuku fisheries and the evidence that was available of depletion of these species “Conservation is a paramount consideration, but the question that is im mediately present to the mind of the administrator is the inexpedience and indeed the injustice of interfering with fishing enterprise unless he is sure of his ground,” said Mr Hefford. The information that must urgently be obtained for this purpose with regard to all commercially important species was first, a statistical record of abstractions; second, a biometrical survey of vital statistics of existing stocks; and third, biological data regarding reproduction, growth and migrations.