No pāua fishing allowed in Kaikōura marine reserve

Policing will be ramped up in a popular Kaikōura fishery in a bid to deter pāua poachers. The recreational pāua fishing season opens in Kaikōura this month, but the Department of Conservation (DOC) and Te Rūnanga o Kaikōura are warning fishermen the Hikurangi Marine Reserve is strictly out of bounds. Shore and boat patrols will be stepped up and fishing in the reserve could net a $600 fine; repeat offenders could face fines up to $10,000.

DOC Kaikōura Marine Reserves ranger Roger Williams says patrolling DOC rangers will be aiming to prevent people taking pāua, and infringement notices with $600 fines for fishing in the marine reserve could be issued, as needed.

Hikurangi Marine Reserve, created in 2014, is about 10 km south of Kaikōura township near Goose Bay. It extends offshore for just over 23 kilometres and covers approximately 10,416 hectares. The patrols are aimed to avoid a repeat of numerous people taking pāua from the marine reserve during the last recreational pāua fishing season, which ran as a trial from 1 December 2021 to the end of February 2022.

“DOC and Te Rūnanga o Kaikōura are concerned about the harm to Hikurangi Marine Reserve’s pāua population from illegal gathering, as occurred during the last recreational pāua fishing season. It is also damaging to the recovery of its marine ecosystem to a more natural state after more than seven years of protection,” says Roger.

“We increased our DOC ranger presence at the marine reserve last pāua fishing season and we’re doing it again this time. We’ve also put in more signs along the marine reserve’s shoreline to ensure people know it’s a marine reserve, with no fishing allowed, as many people last year seemed unaware of it.

“Hikurangi and other marine reserves are strictly no-take areas with no fishing or disturbance of marine life allowed. Anyone going fishing must ensure they know the rules and abide by them, including knowing marine reserve locations and rules. People can download the MarineMate app that includes information about marine reserves and information can also be found on our website www.doc.govt.nz.”

People who see illegal fishing taking place in marine reserves are asked to report it to DOC’s 24-hour number 0800 DOCHOT/0800 36 24 68.

Anyone who breaks the rules in marine reserves faces fines through infringement notices. Serious or repeating offend- ing may result in prosecution with penalties under the Marine Reserves Act of a fine of up to $10,000 and up to three months in prison. Fishing gear used in the offending may be forfeited.

The pāua fishing season runs 15 April to 15 June.

WORDS BY MIKE INSLEY

You could almost hear the collective sigh of relief from Marlborough grape growers and winemakers as March progressed. After February’s torrid weather with the tail end of a cyclone, sunless, damp, overcast days and dire predictions of potentially rampant Botrytis infections in vineyards, the region returned to more typical early Autumn conditions. With the easing of the triple dip La Nina weather pattern we’ve been in since 2020, we even saw some nor-westerlies return. These are Marlborough’s not-so-secret weapon for grape ripening, flavour development and disease control.

The main Sauvignon Blanc harvest kicked off in mid-late March and quickly ramped up to full noise by the end of March. This continued through until Easter when the back of the harvest was well and truly broken. While some Sauvignon vineyards were harvested early for either low alcohol wines or for winery logistics and risk management reasons (wineries doing the math on how many tonnes need to come in before we run out of ripening season), winemakers who held off have been rewarded with fantastic fruit – clean, ripe and full flavoured. The early work put into vineyards with leafplucking, trunk shaking and disease control has paid back in spades.

Sauvignon Blanc yields have been a mixed bag as usual, with unders and overs compared to estimate. To date, the consensus seems to be that yields are similar to, but likely a little back on last year. Part of the reason for the great condition of most crops has been the looser, more open clusters in Sauvignon Blanc, compared to “normal”. This is a result of the mixed bag of weather we had over flowering and has probably eased the yield back a little on last year. We’ll have to wait until the vintage survey is released by NZ Winegrowers sometime in June for the final word on tonnages.

The cool conditions at the start of December (Sauvignon Blanc flowering time) may also impact on yield potential for Vintage 2024. For grapes, next year’s crop is initiated in the developing buds around the time of flowering for the current vintage. Demand for Sauvignon Blanc grapes has remained strong. Grapes left behind by wineries taking only their contracted tonnage have been quickly snapped up by others looking for more fruit. Prices for “surplus” fruit have remained firm.

Low to moderate yields seem to have been the norm for Pinot Noir however, whether the grapes have been grown for sparkling or red wine. Talking to a few winemakers, Pinot Noir destined for red wine has reached psychological as well as physiological ripeness – people are excited about what they saw both on the vine and at the early stages of ferment in tank. Harvest analyses have been as close to perfect as a winemaker could wish – good sugar levels (Brix), nice retained acidity and moderate pH levels. Winemakers also check things like berry skin integrity, stem ripeness and seed maturity while in the vineyard making harvest decisions and these factors have also generally all received a big tick. I’m looking forward to trying some tasty reds from Vintage 2023, although I’ve got a little bit of time to wait. They likely won’t be released until the back end of 2024.

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Mike Insley Viticulture Sales & Marketing Consultant M 021 229 8157 P 03 578 0888 mike.insley@harcourts.co.nz

Rhonda Stewart Sales & Marketing Consultant

M 021 736 922 P 03 578 0888 rhonda.stewart@harcourts.co.nz

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M 027 332 5050 P 03 578 0888 hannah.burns@harcourts.co.nz

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This substantial 20.62ha (approx.) property is in the Mt Pleasant region, just south of the Picton township at the spot known as The Elevation. The access road leads up to a cut ridge, excavated site which gives incredible views out to the Marlborough Sounds. A 3 bay pole shed built in 2020 has 24 solar panels and a battery bank able to supply up to a 4 bedroom house. To arrange an on-site viewing, call William today.

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• 5.7470ha flat grazing land in 11 paddocks with K-line • Bore and rooftop water collection to holding tank

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David Searle Sales & Marketing Consultant

M 021 565 950 P 03 578 0888 david.searle@harcourts.co.nz

Vicki Harrison Jones Rural Team Administration vicki.harrisonjones@harcourts.co.nz