The Ministry for Primary Industries says it is aware of concerns over the availability of crayfish (rock lobster) in the Hauraki Gulf and has brought a scientific review of the fishery forward from 2018 to later this year.
MPI will also initiate an engagement process to characterise problems and potential solutions for management of the fishery. This will inform catch limit settings from April 2018 and other management controls. As an interim measure the CRA2 industry has voluntarily cut its commercial catch by a quarter from 200 to 150 tonnes.
