Whitebait are as endangered as the brown kiwi

Of the six species of juvenile native fish caught as whitebait, my favourite is ko¯ aro. Not because I want to eat them, but because they are such incredible climbers. They can crawl up near-vertical rock waterfalls by using their fins like suction cups and swishing their tails to propel them. This amazing native species lives anywhere from the sea, up into the mountains. You could expect to see one in Lake Taupo¯ or high up on Mt Taranaki, living to the grand old age of 15 years.

Sadly, the ko¯ aro are in big trouble. Like most native fish in New Zealand, their populations have declined to crisis point. The ko¯ aro is as endangered as the North Island brown kiwi. Yet we continue to allow whitebait to be harvested and sold in a largely unregulated fishery.

There’s no silver bullet for our freshwater woes, but demanding that we save our native fish would be a good start.

Most New Zealanders agree that something has to change. In a Department

of Conservation survey of more than 2500 people, 90 per cent said they’d like to see the fishery managed more sustainably.

Forest & Bird has called for a halt to commercial whitebait fishing. We could look at temporarily closing rivers or catchments where fish populations are too low. There is also the possibility of a shorter season, or a halt on fishing during the spring tide when the biggest rushes of whitebait swim from sea to fresh water.

But fishing is not the only threat to native fish. Soon, the Government will ask New Zealanders about a new national policy statement on freshwater management. This is our chance to demand a better future.

We are mistreating our freshwater environment in Aotearoa. Dirty water, wetland destruction, and blocks to fish migration all play a part in whitebait decline. Bridges, roads, dams and pumps can present an impossible obstacle for even the best climbers among our fish and eels. Concrete structures with large overhangs create dead ends, which restricts fish access to food, mates, and in some cases can cause their death.

A 2017 report revealed that Northland and Waikato eels migrating to the sea to breed have been chopped to pieces in pumps.

Water polluted with nitrates from fertilisers and cow urine means low oxygen and high stress for fish. This makes it hard to feed, breed and avoid predators. For many native fish, water quality is the difference between thriving and barely surviving.

And we are continuing to destroy wetlands. Fish love wetlands but Environment Southland revealed that 10 per cent of its wetlands were destroyed between 2007-2017, 40 per cent of which was to make way for dairy farming.

That is a big deal; Southland is the second largest region for remaining wetlands in New Zealand.

We need to ensure the proper rules are put in place to restore our waterways and protect the places our native fish live. We need better controls on land use to reduce cow numbers and fertiliser use that pollutes our streams.

These regulations should also make sure the habitat is accessible so fish can swim freely up and downstream to complete their life cycles. We need protection for every remaining wetland in New Zealand.

Next year, when the Department of Conservation consults on how to manage the whitebait fishery, we need it to become sustainable.

When rivers are healthy the amazing ko¯ aro will return and a sustainable whitebait harvest will be possible. When Environment Minister David Parker begins reforming freshwater policy through the national policy statement on Freshwater Management, tell him to put our native fish first.