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| This
kit uses focusing questions as the structure for the activities.
Each of the focusing questions is relevant to fisheries
management in the following ways: |
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| 1 |
What is the problem, issue, or need that prompted the
demand for actions?
Overfishing was one of the problems leading to the development
of the Quota Management System. Another issue was inefficiencies
within the fishing industry. |
| 2 |
In
what ways is there geographic significance in the problem,
issue or need?
The sustainable use of fish is a resource issue. Some
of the problems that need to be considered include: natural
impacts, such as currents and climate and human impacts
such as fishing, pollution, etc. The impact of fishery
management policies on communities is also a factor. When
the Minister of Fisheries considers adjusting a TACC,
he/she must balance the impact on a fishery against the
economic and social impact on a fishing community. |
| 3 |
Which groups or individuals are interested and why?
What are their interests and value positions on this issue?
Groups interested in fisheries management include: |
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User
groups - commercial (single-operator, large companies),
recreational (for food,sport or fun), foreign licensed
vessels and Maori. |
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Marine
farmers. |
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The
fishing industry, including processing and marketing. |
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Government
policy and delivery agencies such as MFish. |
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Other
agencies such as regional councils, the Department of
Conservation and the Treaty of Waitangi Fisheries Commission. |
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Lobby
groups, including various commercial, recreational and
environmental organisations. |
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Consumers. |
| 4 |
What methods are used to investigate it (the problem,
issue or need) and by whom?
Research is carried out to assess the status of fish stocks,
maximum sustainable yields and the risks of particular
harvesting strategies. |
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MFish
and government policy makers consult with interest groups
and the wider public over fisheries issues. |
| 5 |
What natural and cultural processes are involved in
the problem, issue or need? To what extent are the processes
inter-related?
The processes are inter-related. |
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The
natural processes include: climate, the atmospheric conditions,
the water temperature, currents, nutrients, the size of
the resource and the form of the continental shelf and
slope. |
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The
cultural processes include: conflicting interests of user
groups, the responsibility of government and local government,
Maori fishing rights, the importance of fish in our diet,
fishing as an industry and the use of technology in catching
and researching fish. |
| 6 |
What can geographers add to an understanding of the
natural or cultural processes involved?
Geographers can assess the various conflicting demands
on the fisheries resource and suggest ways to resolve
these conflicts. |
| 7 |
What are the constraints and alternative courses of
action?
Examples of constraints are biological, economic, technological,
cultural and political. |
| 8 |
How is the decision on the course of action being made?
How have decisions been made? What are the implications
for different groups and individuals?
Fisheries management is an ongoing issue, but of major
importance was the introduction of the Quota Management
System in 1986. All fisheries legislation was subject
to a review, which got under way in 1992. The review was
intended to simplify and integrate fisheries management
procedures. This culminated in the Fisheries Act 1996. |
