Why it matters
The Hauraki Gulf is an incredible place, globally recognised for the diversity of its wildlife, including whales, dolphins, and seabirds.
This ocean world, right on our doorstep, supports the people of Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland and beyond, providing well-being, recreation, and livelihoods. Its kaimoana has fed generations of Kiwi whānau.
But the Hauraki Gulf is in crisis. Waters that once shimmered with vast schools of trevally and snapper, and reefs that bristled with crayfish, are now overfished. Bottom trawling continues to destroy the seabed, leaving behind an underwater desert. Every time it rains, sewage, heavy metals and mud flow into the gulf from our cities, farms, and industries, making it unswimmable for humans and increasingly harmful to the wildlife that lives in it. With a rapidly growing population, we urgently need better ways of managing our impact on the marine environment.
The need for action is urgent. Working with mana whenua and other conservation partners, we are calling for:
- 30% marine protection
- a plan of action to reduce sedimentation entering the marine environment
- an end to bottom trawling.
Show your love for our precious Hauraki Gulf Tīkapa Moana. Protect what you love.
What can you do
Sign the petition to STOP commercial fishing in marine protected areas
The Tīkapa Moana / Hauraki Gulf Marine Protection Bill – more than a decade in the making – will establish two marine reserves, five seafloor protection areas, and 12 high protection areas in the Hauraki Gulf, while acknowledging customary rights within seafloor protection areas and high protection areas.
But now the Government is ramming through a last-minute change to allow commercial fishing in high protection zones – a change that goes against the Environment Select Committee's unanimous recommendations.
Marine protected areas should be for replenishing our taonga species, not for commercial fishing.
We're calling on Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to intervene and stop this amendment.
