A picture supplied by Greenpeace of coral being pulled up by a trawler. Photo: Greenpeace
Greenpeace plans to inspect the Tasman sea floor where a Nelson fishing boat dragged up 37 kilograms of deep sea coral last year, after obtaining the coordinates it says the government refused to hand over.
The damage caused by Westfleet Fishing's Tasman Viking in the Lord Howe rise area, which is renowned for diverse marine life, last October prompted an immediate ban on fishing in the area.
This month Greenpeace Aotearoa's head of oceans Ellie Hooper will lead an expedition to survey the affected sea bed, after Australia released the coordinates to the group's lead researcher.
Hooper said countries were supposed to "use the best available scientific information" to assess any damage and Greenpeace had offered to survey the site for free, using deep sea cameras during an already planned expedition to survey seamounts and other underwater mountains.
"But the New Zealand government… turned down Greenpeace's offer… and our request for the information, quoting commercial sensitivities despite all fishing operators and SPRFMO [South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation] states already being notified of the location."
The government's refusal to provide them - even after an Official Information Request - was both "ludicrous" and "clearly political", said Hooper.
"These coordinates had already been shared with all fishing companies and SPRFMO countries so why is this information being hidden?"
Australia "clearly" had a "more progressive and transparent approach when it comes to deep-sea management", she added. "New Zealand failing to release the data is clearly the government protecting the commercial fishing industry above gathering scientific information about the impact of the encounter."
But Fisheries New Zealand's director science and information, Simon Lawrence, said when the agency received the request for coordinates from Greenpeace, it consulted with the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation, as the international organisation responsible for managing fisheries in the area the capture took place.
"SPRFMO considered the request and advised not to share the coordinates, saying 'it seems clear that the "encounter area" constitutes "non-public domain" data.' The coordinates were therefore withheld in line with New Zealand's obligations as a SPRFMO member state."
Fisheries NZ said the suspension applied to all countries' vessels and will be in place until 2026.
The Greenpeace survey of the seabed affected by the Tasman Viking is being taken as part of an already planned 'seamounts expedition'. Deep sea cameras will be used to collect images and data of these ecosystems and identify the species living on them.
Seamounts and other underwater hills and knolls are often home to diverse coral and sponges, key breeding grounds for fish and feeding spots for migrating whales, said Hooper.
"The main threats to these ecosystems is bottom trawling," she said, adding that studies have shown that the coral brought to the surface was "only a fraction of what's destroyed on the seafloor."
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