Late last month hundreds of people gathered at Auckland’s Mission Bay for an on-water rally to show some love for the Hauraki Gulf – Tīkapa Moana and send a clear message to decision makers: ban bottom trawling in the marine park.
It was awesome to see heaps of boats, including waka ama, fishing boats, yachts and kayaks, show up on the water while crowds gathered on the beach to cheer as a massive ‘ban bottom trawling’ banner was towed into position.
Here’s how the day unfolded:
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Bottom Trawling in the Hauraki Gulf – Tīkapa Moana
Once abundant with life the Hauraki Gulf – Tīkapa Moana has been brought to the brink by over a century of destructive human activity. If we want the Gulf to recover and thrive, bottom trawling has got to go.
That’s why it was amazing to see so many people join the call and gather together at Mission Bay. It shows how strong the ‘ban bottom trawling’ movement is and how it’s growing.
We’ve collated some images that capture the inspiring mood of the day below.
Why bottom trawling needs to be banned
Bottom trawling involves dragging heavy nets along the bottom of the ocean, bulldozing the seafloor, sending up sediment plumes and scooping up all marine life in the way.
Bottom trawl methods catch a huge amount of bycatch, including larger marine animals such as dolphins and endangered seabirds. It is the most destructive fishing method there is and has no place in Hauraki Gulf marine park.
What you can do to help
If you came along to the ‘Show Your Heart for Hauraki’ event – thank you! Events like this show the public mandate for change and let decision makers know that bottom trawling has no future.
If you couldn’t make it, you can add your voice by signing the petition below.
Call upon the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries to ban all forms of mobile bottom-contact fishing including bottom trawling, scallop dredging and Danish seining within the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park.
What happens next?
Over the next few months the Minister for Oceans & Fisheries Rachel Brooking will be making decisions that will either help restore the Gulf or allow its continued decline. The government will also be considering banning bottom trawling in other vulnerable marine areas, including seamounts.
The public mandate for change is clear. Over 80,000 people have signed petitions calling for a ban on bottom trawling seamounts and almost 80% of people surveyed said the same thing. In the Hauraki Gulf region, 84% of people said they want trawl methods gone from their big blue backyard.
It’s time for the government to listen and with your help we’ll keep the pressure up and keep making it clear to decision makers that bottom trawling has got to go so we can protect the ocean for the future.
Drone photos and video by Echo Valley © Greenpeace / Simon Murtagh, Echo Valley
