Research priorities in aquatic resources management in New Zealand

Research priorities in New Zealand are viewed against the fisheries management system in place and the types of fisheries and resources which are being managed within this system. Currrent research priorities are established in two major areas: (1) conservation of resources which is the responsibility of the Ministry of Fisheries; and (2) developmental research aimed at improving efficiency or developing new resources, which is the responsibility of the private sector. Fisheries research is focused on the following: (i) key species or resources that are commercially fished; (ii) non-commercial fisheries (traditional and recreational) based on key species; (iii) the effects of fishing on non-target species; and (iv) the effects of different fishing techniques on aquatic ecosystems. The specific research goals concentrate on the following: (i) fisheries resources assessment focused on developing and applying methods of risk and decision analyses to stock assessment and the evaluation of alternative harvesting strategies and management options; (ii) harvest levels to obtain accurate estimates of the size and distribution of harvests from commercial, recreational, Maori customary and traditional fishing catches as well as estimation of levels of illegal catch and fishery induced mortality on non-target species; and (iii) impacts of aquaculture and enhancement on aquatic environment involving the examination of the interaction between aquaculture and enhancement systems on wild fisheries and the estimation of sustainable production levels of aquaculture and enhancement systems, including carrying capacity. Given New Zealand's position in the temperate southwest Pacific Ocean, it shares relatively few species with other countries in the region. The primary overlap in terms of similar systems and species is with Australia. New Zealand cooperates with regional organizations in carrying out research and assessment on pelagic species such as tunas. The generic problems associated with the aquatic resource management in New Zealand are shared with most other countries in the region. The establishment of techniques to understand and analyze the biological systems on which fisheries resource management is based are common. Issues such as the management of diseases in both wild and aquaculture systems and modeling for management decision making and risk assessment are common within the region. Expertise in these areas is very limited and there are good opportunities for sharing this expertise. Status of fisheries in New Zealand is presented and discussed in the paper