The NZ Government has proposed added protection measures while a full review is done and asked for a planned review of the Hectors and Maui’s Threat Management Plan to be brought forward from 2013 to this year.

Emergency situation
Rebecca Bird, WWF’s Marine Programme Manager says, “The Minister of Primary Industries David Carter has been too slow to act. The female Maui’s dolphin drowned in fishing nets off the coast of Taranaki in January, outside of the protection zone, should have resulted in an immediate extension of set net and trawling restrictions throughout the dolphin’s full range.

It has long been known that Maui’s live off the Taranaki coast and it shouldn’t have taken the death of this animal to prompt an official recognition of this fact, Rebecca Bird”, continued WWF’s Marine Programme Manager.

The Minister has powers under the Fisheries Act to respond in emergency situations to protect species at risk.

“Mr Carter says the Government must balance several factors in proposing interim protection measures, including the impact on the local fishing community. It is unacceptable to put limited economic arguments ahead of extinction prevent measures”, says Ms Bird.

Solutions exist
“It is a national tragedy that our critically endangered dolphins are still dying needlessly in fishing nets. We need to act immediately to get nets out of the water, including harbours and estuaries, to protect these dolphins throughout their range.

“We can’t change our past to bring back species like the moa that are lost forever, but we must not, and will not, give up on our critically endangered dolphins. We know that solutions exist to save Maui’s, it is time the government acted on behalf of all New Zealanders to protect this precious national treasure. The world is watching.”

WWF is calling on the Government to ban set net fishing throughout Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins’ habitat, to prevent more dolphins dying needlessly in nets. The global conservation organisation is also campaigning for the implementation of a government-led effective action plan for the recovery of these dolphins that identifies, manages and mitigates all other threats to the species, such as boat strike, pollution, coastal development, sand-mining and exploration for oil and gas.

Source: WWF news release

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