Deep-sea trawling proposal slammed

Environmental campaigners have raised concerns that New Zealand appears to be the only country pushing for more of a controversial and destructive fishing practice.

The South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation, made up of 15 governments from China to the European Union, will begin its annual meeting on Monday.

But Greenpeace ocean campaigner Jessica Desmond said, based on pre-meeting submissions, she believed the New Zealand delegation would be arguing for more ‘‘destructive’’ bottom trawling.

‘‘New Zealand will also argue to increase orange roughy catch, a slow-growing fish species caught through bottom trawling. ‘‘[The delegation] will argue that bottom trawl fishing should be allowed to continue as-is, even though it is known to destroy deep-sea corals and other vulnerable marine life.’’

Other nations at the meeting, including Australia, would be pushing for tightened rules to reduce damage from bottom trawling, Desmond said, and were also backing a review of bottom trawling rules in 2022. ‘‘In contrast, New Zealand has made one conservation proposal, to ban bottom trawling in areas deeper than 1400 metres. In reality, trawlers do not fish below 1250m, so this rule would do nothing to stop bottom trawling damage.’’

Desmond said that in the past year, New Zealand was the only country to bottom trawl in the South Pacific. ‘‘There has been a pattern of New Zealand governments putting industry over ocean protection, both domestically and in these South Pacific meetings. New Zealanders are over it . . . it remains to be seen if the new government and minister for oceans and fisheries will take this in hand, and ensure marine biodiversity is protected.’’

Fisheries NZ’s director of fisheries management, Emma Taylor, said: ‘‘New Zealand has proposed to close additional areas to bottom trawling.’’