Draining the Seas – highlighting positive new perspectives on bottom trawling in New Zealand
Despite international controversy, bottom trawling in New Zealand is a sustainable and effective way of harvesting healthy wild-caught animal protein.
The New Zealand Federation of Commercial Fishermen (the Fed) has just released a video to help provide a new perspective and give New Zealanders a true look at how bottom trawling really works in our waters. This video, Drain the Seas gives an accurate view of the seabed in the territorial sea (out to 12 nautical miles) around the South Island and shows the true extent of bottom trawling. Through doing so, the concentrated and small trawl footprint is emphasised, challenging suggestions that the technique is responsible for widespread benthic devastation.
Members of the public and global consumers are invited to watch the video, with some key facts from Seafood New Zealand presented in support of bottom trawling:
Bottom contact fishing (where part of the trawl net physically contacts the seabed) occurs in less than 3% of New Zealand waters each year.
This area has decreased between 2008 and 2022 (Ministry for Primary Industries, “Extent and intensity of bottom contact by commercial trawling in New Zealand waters, 1990-2022”, 2024).
31% of New Zealand waters are closed to bottom contact fishing – an area four times New Zealand’s landmass.
Approximately two-thirds of New Zealand’s deepwater catch is certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) or is in an MSC improvement programme.
In 2024, 97% of stocks landed by volume were scientifically evaluated as being in good shape (Fisheries New Zealand, mpi.govt.nz/fishing-aquaculture/fisheries-management/fish-stock-status/.
Wild-caught fish from New Zealand’s deepwater fleet has the lowest carbon footprint among commonly consumed animal proteins and foods produced in New Zealand (AgResearch, “Carbon footprint of fish from the New Zealand Deepwater Trawl Fleet: a preliminary study”, 2023).
Congratulations to the Fed for the success and work in producing and releasing the video, and we look forward to more videos being released in the series in future.
Dawson and Associates represents a large number of New Zealand fishing clients in matters ranging from vessel sale and purchase, registration, health and safety, crewing, and fisheries investigations. If you have any questions about fisheries law, are looking at purchasing or selling a fishing vessel, or have been involved in a maritime or fisheries incident please contact Peter Dawson on +64 27 229 9624 peter@maritimelaw.co.nz or Troy Stade on +64 27 368 6730 troy@maritimelaw.co.nz.