The Minister of Fisheries today announced an expansion of areas open to commercial harvesting of beachcast seaweed.
This is a big worry.
While beach-cast seaweed might appear to be dead, it actually forms a habitat in itself, supporting myriad forms of life, such as tiny crustaceans and micro-organisms, and is a source of food, shelter and nesting material for other marine and coastal species, including dotterels, pipits, gulls and other birds.
It also provides a stabilising effect, protecting beach sand from erosion and assisting formation of dunes. Seaweed is swept on and off beaches by waves and tides – when washed back into the sea it is an important habitat for young fish and is eaten by species such as paua and kina.
Forest & Bird is not opposed to members of the public collecting seaweed for their own use, but opposes extensive removal of seaweed by commercial operators, which could have a significant impact. If not tightly controlled, commercial exploitation could strip beaches of seaweed and machinery used to gather it could also damage the coastal environment.
Because the harvest of seaweed is not part of New Zealand’s fisheries quota management system, there are no set limits on the amount that can be taken.
Before harvest can take place, we need to have much greater certainty about the ecological impact of that harvest, and assurances that adequate environmental protection measures will be in place.