By Debbie Porteous on Fri, 7 Sep 2012
The Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust has indicated to the Dunedin
City Council it will seek the council's support in its battle
against the threat to the species from inshore commercial
fishing.
Trust field manager Dave McFarlane told councillors at a
public forum in Dunedin this week the trust initially sought
acknowledgement from the council that yellow-eyed penguins
played a key part in Dunedin's $100 million-a-year
nature-based tourism economy.
In acknowledging that, the council needed to be aware the
penguins, and thus Dunedin's reputation as the wildlife
capital of New Zealand, were under threat from inshore
commercial set-net and trawler fishing, he said.
The number of nests was declining and it was time to take
action, he said.
"I think there's a perception that the yellow-eyed penguins
are here to stay, but the Yellow-Eyed Penguin Trust does not
share that belief.
"If we, as a city, value this species, we need to take some
responsibility for its conservation."
Asked by Cr Richard Thomson exactly what it was seeking from
the council, Mr McFarlane said, generally, the trust was
seeking the council's advocacy and support to alleviate the
problem of penguins being caught and killed during commercial
fishing operations.
"It may involve attending meetings in Wellington, or joining
the trust or other organisations in making submissions."
The trust would meet Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull and council
chief executive Paul Orders next month to discuss the matter
in detail. "This is just a heads up for you really."
The trust had been plugging away for 10 years at limiting
penguin by-catch, during which time official observers had
been watching fisheries catches.
There were questions over how thorough and accurate that
information was, but the trust believed there was already
enough data to indicate there was a problem.
"We need to work out how we go about mitigating or
eliminating that by-catch."
source
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