New Zealand Fishing News

Too much silt drives hungry trout to deeper water

I have had a lot of comments from anglers unsuccessful in Lake Benmore. That is to be expected because the traditional edgewater fishing has been destroyed through the influx of sediment from persistent high flows from inlet streams....

Fish and Game leads Wetland Conservation

As one of the lead agencies in the conservation and creation of wetlands, Fish & Game New Zealand is strongly committed to working towards the development of more of these threatened ecosystems throughout the country...

Hatchery plays key role in industry

The small Silverstream salmon hatchery tucked away near Kaiapoi mostly goes under the radar, but it supports the multimillion-dollar South Island salmon industry...

Surplus salmon production a bonus for Waimakariri anglers

An overproduction of salmon smolt has meant a bonus for Waimakariri salmon anglers. 80,000 fish were surplus to requirement for Aoraki Smokehouse Salmon, who in tandem with The Isaac Wildlife and Conservation Trust have donated them for release into the wild...

Tests show dairy run off the culprit

Cows have been blamed for contaminating water at two river swimming spots and in Moenui Bay, at the head of Pelorus Sound, where bacteria levels have exceeded Environment Ministry standards...

Health Warning – Algal Bloom in Hurunui River

The Community and Public Health division of the Canterbury District Health Board has issued a health warning after potentially toxic algae (benthic cyanobacteria) were found in the Hurunui River...

Fernwood wins right to water

A South Canterbury group can go ahead with its proposal to take and dam hundreds of thousands of litres of water from the Pareora River, after an Environment Court memorandum has reversed a previous decision...

Tourist caught fishing illegally

Another tourist has been caught illegally fishing in Otago, and three Swiss anglers were caught hours before they left the country and fined $500 each for fishing illegally in Wanaka earlier this month...

ORC pleased with water quality policy

The Otago Regional Council has put forward a policy it claims will clean up and preserve Otago's waterways...

Protecting original wetlands far preferable to restoration

A new study in the open access journal PLoS Biology finds that restored wetlands may take centuries to recover the biodiversity and carbon sequestration of original wetlands, if they ever do...

Orari-Opihi-Pareora Zone Committee reaches major milestone

The Canterbury Water Orari-Opihi-Pareora Zone Committee will release its draft Zone Implementation Programme (ZIP) for public feedback on 30 January...

Waitohi water storage options assessed

The values people place on water have guided a new report on three water storage options for the Waitohi River in the Hurunui district of North Canterbury...

2012 Fly Fishing Film Tour hooks the thrill of the catch

Whether the focus is trout rising to tiny tricos in Montana or to huge cicadas in New Zealand, the global nature of the Fly Fishing Film Tour is luring anglers across the country to an evening of fine fishing – no waders or license required...

Sanford profit slip 'not good enough'

Listed fisheries company Sanford's sales have fallen in the first three months of the current financial year, continuing the downward profit trend experienced last year...

Drowning toll at eight-year high

The drowning toll reached an eight-year high last year, with experts describing it as a tragic increase on the previous year's record low...

Keeping Gisborne didymo free

An awareness campaign to combat the threat of didymo or 'rock snot' in Gisborne waterways is underway over summer...

Fish, service and spies

The interesting article by Mr Shields about the blue cod is actually a red herring. It is beyond dispute that a skilled fisher, with the right hook, can land, handle and release a fish, usually without harm. It is not, however, given to most of us to be able to do that...

No signs to warn of death trap, dad says

The family of a young Christchurch woman who drowned in a pond next to the Waimakariri River last week are determined to bring about changes to the "death trap" that claimed her life...

More rainfall needed to improve dry conditions

Despite rainfall in most parts of Southland in the past two weeks, there has not been enough to significantly alleviate the current dry spell in the region...

Geoff Thomas: Tracing truth on the fly

It started with an argument that developed as the night wore on: famous American trout fisherman and fly-tier Andre Puyans was adamant that the Matuka pattern of flies was invented in the United States...

Smithsonian blogger aghast at NZ food prices

Readers of the Smithsonian's magazine are learning New Zealand has plenty of trout but the fish are reluctant to get hooked, which is unfortunate given what the readers are being told about the price of food in this country...

Birds under pressure from nature

The cruel hand of nature has dealt a blow to the coastal birds that make the Pouawa rivermouth their home...

Rotorua lakes hit record levels

Some of Rotorua’s lakes have hit record levels following exceptionally heavy rain in the catchment over the New Year – but some haven’t quite reached last summer’s records...

Splashing time packs big safety message

A summer programme focused on giving local youths the opportunity to learn about water safety and the marine environment has been a huge success...

No lake like Rotorua for keen angler

Bert Robinson loves Lake Rotorua - he fishes for trout six days a day each summer from various spots on the lake and moved to the city for the fishing thrills...

Tawanui community reunited by new bridge

The Catlins community celebrated once again being united, at the official opening of the new Tawanui bridge yesterday...

Drownings were preventable, says WSNZ

Two men have died, two are missing and one is in hospital in a serious condition after incidents Water Safety New Zealand says were all preventable...

Salmon survival odds lenghtening in Canterbury

Some have already pushed themselves into the Waimakariri estuary, nosing forward into fresh water, giving in to the urgent call of home...

Purple loosestrife in Tokoroa

The highly invasive pest plant known as purple loosestrife has been discovered in Waikato for the first time at Lake Moananui, near Tokoroa...

Rough weather brings catch of a lifetime

While rough weather meant fishermen and boaties in the Bay of Plenty were dodging containers and other debris from the wrecked ship Rena, for one Tauranga angler it produced a once-in-a-lifetime bonus - a huge black marlin...

Low flows may be stressful for trout, but not for anglers

The low flows we have in the rivers at the moment (hopefully, rain that was forecast this week will turn this statement into a lie) are a stressful time for trout and other things that rely on cool water for their lives...

Fishing show host wins challenge

The fishing wasn't great, but British actor Robson Green loved his day on the D'Urville River at the head of Lake Rotoroa, his fishing opponent, Felix Borenstein, said this morning...

Injured fishermen land in Christchurch

Seven fisherman injured after a fire swept through a Korean fishing boat in the Southern Ocean have arrived in Christchurch...

Kids flood in for water safety

A summer programme which teaches young people water safety and the value of our marine environment has reached capacity and could now be run up to three times a year in Hawke's Bay...

Waikato farmer faces $73k fine for “not stopping for anyone"

A Piopio farming couple have been convicted of offences under the Resource Management Act and face fines of over $73,000 for draining an internationally recognised wetland to gain further pasture land and increase farm production...

Skeggs Group sheds Pacifica Salmon

Dunedin-based Skeggs Group has divested itself of most of its aquaculture interests as it continues to reinvest heavily in its expanding southern tourism holdings...

Wet, wild weather predicted for Rotorua

Rotorua campers are a "hardy" bunch who are not retreating even though two wild weather fronts are expected to hit the city...

A little peace and quiet at Kidds Bush

Tucked away among mountain beech trees in a scenic bay on the northwest shore of Lake Hawea is a tiny camping spot frequented by a diverse range of people...

Rotorua: Foraging the gourmet way

When you think of Rotorua you think of bubbling mud pools and the luge; cultural concerts and outdoor adventures...

Fishermen Over-Represented in Holiday Period Drowning Toll

Nine people lost their lives to drowning in New Zealand waters during the official holiday period – between 4pm Christmas Eve and 6am this morning...

Holiday dates leave us under the weather

My American neighbour suggested this week that New Zealand's holiday schedule is wrong. Having just had his latest fishing expedition ruined by torrential rain, he was in no mood to muck about...

Contaminated waters: Sheep dips suspected

Te Runanga o Arowhenua wants answers about the sources of contamination in foods gathered from some South Canterbury waterways...

Dry December for Southland

December has been the driest month on record for most of Southland with as little as three per cent of the historical rainfall average falling in some parts...

Time to walk the walk on water

Changes afoot in regulations governing water use in Otago will influence the region's prosperity for years to come, the Otago Regional Council says...

Dairy's waterways policing 'woeful'

Tasman dairy farmers have been chided for providing misleading information on excluding livestock from waterways – a key measure of the Dairying and Clean Streams Accord – after an independent audit found their performance was one of the worst in the country...

Rivers still rising and surface flooding for Eastern BOP

In the eastern Bay of Plenty river levels are still rising, roads are closed and there is significant surfacing water still around, so holidaymakers and residents are advised to take care...

River warning after dog death

An Upper Hutt woman is warning dog owners to be cautious around the Manawatu River after her dog died mysteriously during an outing this week...

Kinloch's magic keeps drawing visitors back

At the head of Lake Wakatipu you'll find a small town filled every holiday season with campers, couples and families. Olivia Caldwell discovers why Kinloch is no longer a secret...

Long- time salmon angler turns to science

When 82-year-old John Hodgson heads out to fish the Waimakariri he doesn’t just take his fishing tackle, his thermometer and notebook are always handy too...

Waikato River Trails: Backcountry with hidden beauties

The Waikato River Trails section of the New Zealand Bike Trail opens up a beautiful tract of backcountry North Island. Made up of five trails that follow the Waikato River....

Stream pollution traced to leak on private property

Water found to be polluting the Mowhanau Stream is coming from a suspected portable water leak on private property, Wanganui District Council engineers have found...

Native fish at centre of hydro arguments

A native fish named Gollum will be back in the spotlight next year, at the centre of a battle over whether a hydro-electric dam could be built on the Nevis River...

Additional Upper Waitaki consent decisions released

Environment Canterbury has released a further nine Upper Waitaki consent application decisions which have been processed by a panel of independent hearing commissioners...

Arsenic found in riverfoods

Te Runanga o Arowhenua wants answers about the sources of contamination in foods gathered from some South Canterbury waterways....

Water options investigation announced in Wairarapa

A project to bring widespread irrigation to the Wairarapa has entered what instigators are calling “a new phase.”...

Top-quality water ES's aim

Declining water quality has been the defining issue for Environment Southland this year...

Check, Clean, Dry around lakes this summer

Check, Clean, Dry is a message you’ll come across if you’re out enjoying the Rotorua Lakes this summer...

Only 42% comply on water survey

The number of dairy farms that completely prevent stock access to waterways has been surveyed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, with results showing much less compliance than previous findings...

Safety of sites to get food assessed

South Cantabrians are being warned to limit eating some fish caught in certain rivers in the area because of contamination from old pesticides and heavy metals....

Sacred Blue Lake's waters crystal clear

Blue Lake in Nelson Lakes National Park has clearer water than Golden Bay's renowned Te Waikoropupu (Pupu) Springs, Niwa scientists say...

Fonterra must explain self-reporting inaccuracy

Fonterra needs to explain the vast discrepancy between claims made today about the success of the Clean Stream Accord and the findings of an independent review commissioned by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) said Green Party Co-Leader Russel Norman...

Regional councillors could be replaced

Fish and Game is warning that the entire West Coast Regional Council could be replaced after its councillors ignored bias warnings to keep making prosecution decisions....

Fish and Game wins right not to limit evidence

Otago Fish and Game has won a legal victory in a decade-long battle with Pioneer Generation over the Nevis Valley...

Poison warning for South Canterbury kai

Maori in South Canterbury are being warned not to eat too much kai gathered from particular rivers and streams for fears they could be poisoned by mercury, arsenic and DDT....

Nelson Tasman Region Open for Visitors

The Nelson Tasman region is most definitely open,” says Lynda Keene, Chief Executive of Nelson Tasman Tourism, “and industry operators and DOC teams are keen to welcome returning visitors and new visitors to the region over the Christmas/New Year holiday period...

Treatment for Lake Okaro’s algal bloom

Bay of Plenty Regional Council has dosed Lake Okaro near Rainbow Mountain with a modified zeolite mineral to deal with toxic blue-green algal bloom visible in the lake...

New pest weed outbreak in Waikato

Waikato Regional Council staff are working to control a fresh outbreak of the aggressive plant pest Alligator Weed at Ruapuke Beach, between Raglan and Kawhia...

Be a Happy Hunter Gatherer this Christmas

The Rotorua lakes are all set to serve up one New Zealand’s more unique Christmas holidays – where the whole family can share in some of the hunter-gatherer excitement that trout fishing provides...

Lagoon news was 'bolt of lightning'

Some overseas visitors are using Department of When it was revealed that Southland's Waituna Lagoon was critically ill, the news came as a "bolt of lightening", local farmer Gerald Spain said...

Huts being misused

Some overseas visitors are using Department of Conservation huts in the Motueka area like "hotels" and overstaying their welcome, says a DOC staff member...

Exotic snail invasion alarms scientist

Demand for exotic aquarium pets has allowed the alien ear pond snail to morph from conversation piece to an invasive species...

Sounds teen wins opportunity for aquaculture study

Brook Lines is the inaugural winner of the Queen Charlotte College Aquaculture Academy New Zealand King Salmon Scholarship...

Hooked on Fly Fishing wins prize

PlanetFM's popular fishing programme 'Hooked on Flyfishing has been awarded a prize for being the secong most listened to programme...

Workshop discusses new strategy for Rotorua lakes

About 60 people from iwi groups, key stakeholders, community group representatives, district and regional councillors worked together to develop input into a new strategy for the Rotorua Te Arawa lakes...

Rotorua community supports weed control

Rotorua businesses, iwi, lakeside communities and recreational bodies have strongly supported Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s weed control operations on Rotorua lakes...

Vineyard ponds restocked with trout for display

About 80 rainbow trout have a haven in two ponds on an Omarama vineyard, safe from anglers and free to grow to a big size...

Aeration project planned for Rotoehu

A new intervention technique to prevent sediment releases of nitrogen and phosphorous from the beds of Rotorua’s lakes will be tried in Lake Rotoehu in late January...

Fish & Game: Smallest Release has Big Value

Tipping just 200 trout into a tiny North Island lake is the proverbial drop in a bucket for Fish & Game officers - who often release thousands at a time...

Water plans 'may not suit Southland'

Environment Southland chairman Ali Timms says the recommendations of a New Zealand Conservation Authority report into water quality may not be suitable for the region...

Outdoor recreation wins under UF agreement

UnitedFuture’s confidence and supply agreement with the National Party includes a number of important wins for outdoor recreation and conservation, UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne said today...

Anglers Given Check, Clean Dry Reminder

Eastern Region Fish & Game has issued a strong ‘Check, Clean, Dry (CCD)’ reminder to anglers, after a number of Rotorua streams opened to fishing...

Battle rages over valley's future

A power company wants to dam the remote Nevis River in Otago at just about this spot. The debate is raging, including greenie versus greenie...

Australia takes fly fishing gold

The Snowy Mountains turned on just about every type of weather except snow for the 25 anglers participating in the 8th Oceania Fly Fishing Championships hosted by Fly Fish Australia New South Wales...

Rangitikei River a community asset

Rangitikei people are proud of the river and their district council wants to keep it that way...

Google Earth Shows How Dams Could Worsen Climate Change

A new interactive Google Earth video tour aims to teach people how damming rivers around the world can exacerbate climate change...

Warning on the spraying of riverbeds

Ongoing spraying of riverbeds in Golden Bay could have unintended consequences that damage the marine ecosystem, says scientist Dr Meriel Watts, co-ordinator of the Pesticide Action Network...

Fish and Game has great year

The Otago Fish and Game Council has posted an $87,772 surplus, making it the "cash cow" of its counterparts across the country, chairman Monty Wright told the annual meeting in Dunedin yesterday...

Call for river boaties to take it slow

Bird Rescue volunteer Corina Hooper says fishing lines and boats speeding up and down the river pose a serious threat to the birds...

Why fish oil is good for your brain

Eating oily fish such as salmon and trout can significantly improve your memory say scientists...

Giving Nature a helping hand

Montrose Salmon and Trout Hatchery in the Rakaia Gorge is an asset to the future of the South Island fishery. But it faces a number of threats...

Tigers are on the prowl in Rotoma

Tiger trout,rather than the four-footed kind, have been released into lake Rotoma and they are keenly sought by anglers...

Political parties speak on issues that affect anglers and hunters

Fish and Game has offered the six political parties currently in government the chance to outline their policy positions on issues important to anglers and hunters...

Trout fishing tourney: Angler reveals tips

Rotorua angler Bevan Lash usually heads to Lake Rotorua for a chance at hooking the biggest brown trout...

Lake full at last, now the big test

The Opuha Lake is brimful after recent rain and one of its early proponents, farmer Tom Henderson, said this shows the Opuha Dam is an asset to the Opuha and Opihi Rivers, as there is enough water saved to keep water in the rivers throughout summer...

More than 130 submissions oppose cycle trail

The Southland District Council has received more than 130 submissions opposing the proposed $7 million Around the Mountains Cycle Trail, including 34 from overseas anglers worried about its impact on remote rivers...

Anglers Warn Politicians On Trout Farming

A national trout fishing body has warned National that any thought of trout farming could result in strong and vocal opposition and election action from the 100,000 or more trout anglers in New Zealand...

Trout Release – Lake Mc Laren – Kaimai Ranges

Fish & Game is preparing to carry out its annual release of 700 trout into Lake Mc Laren and the Ruahihi Canal – with Tauranga anglers invited to play their part...

Biosecurity does matter - Federated Farmers

Federated Farmers welcomes commitments from the Labour Party on biosecurity and commends the Party for agreeing with the Federation's 2011 Manifesto...

Aquaculture reforms concern yachties

Yachting New Zealand (YNZ) feels it is timely to reiterate its position on aquaculture development...

Is trout farming on National’s agenda? Dunne

UnitedFuture and freshwater anglers are astonished at speculation National is to put trout farming back on the agenda, says UnitedFuture Leader Peter Dunne...

Trawler runs aground off East Cape

A fishing trawler has grounded on the East Cape early this morning, although there are no reports of an oil leak...

Trawler runs aground off coast

Two men are sitting atop a severely listed fishing
trawler that has run aground off the coast of Ruatoria near Gisborne...

UnitedFuture launches key outdoor heritage policies

UnitedFuture launches key policies for protecting our outdoor heritage...

Making better use of water

National is pledging $400 million within the next two years to boost water storage and irrigation...

Time running out to have say on local water issues

People interested in having their say on the Lower Waitaki - South Coastal Canterbury Zone Committee's draft Zone Implementation Programme (ZIP) have until 25 November to provide their feedback...

All smiles as youngsters reel in trout

Palmerston North youngsters were all smiles on Sunday as they had a crack at trout fishing at the Hokowhitu Lagoon thanks to Fish & Game and local anglers...

State of the Water Resource Report 2011 released

Governor General The Right Honourable Sir Jerry Environment Canterbury has released its annual State of the Water Resource Report for 2011...

Councils are turning a blind eye to stock in waterways

Greens reveal that councils are turning a blind eye to stock in waterways...

Governor General named patron of trout centre

Governor General The Right Honourable Sir Jerry Mateparae has agreed to become Patron of the Tongariro National Trout Centre Society...

Application lodged to vary the Rakaia Water Conservation Order

Fish and Game are seeking the help of anglers to ensure a proposal to vary the Rakaia Water Conservation Order to allow increased irrigation and hydro power generation from the river does not compromise it... Read more >>>

Forensic first in fish investigation – big fine imposed

In a New Zealand first, the Ministry of Fisheries reported today that forensic paint sampling had been used to identify the location of a vessel where fish was illegally dumped...

NZ King Salmon proposal referred to Board of Inquiry

The New Zealand King Salmon Company Limited’s (NZKS) proposal to establish eight new salmon farming sites in the Marlborough Sounds has been sent directly to an independent Board of Inquiry under the Government’s nationally significant proposal process with the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA)...

Chilly opening to fishing season

It was a case of the keen and the cold, for those who were out fishing on the opening day of the High Country Fishing Season – but many were rewarded for their efforts...

Keen fishers share their skill and adventures

There are lots of great places to fish around New Zealand's coast, either close to home or somewhere more remote...

Trout fishing on Lake Taupo

Just 36 hours before the Final of Rugby World Cup 2011 kicked off, competition winners Terence and Jane Grace found themselves in tranquil Taupo Marina, getting ready to board the Nautilus for a four-hour trout fishing experience on New Zealand’s largest lake...

Didymo headwater challenge

Didymo is probably now in most of the South Canterbury and North Otago waterways it is going to get into, according to Central South Island Fish and Game officer Hamish Stevens, but the challenge now is to keep the remaining "clean" waterways in the region free from didymo...

Application lodged to vary the Rakaia Water Conservation Order

Fish and Game are seeking the help of anglers to ensure a proposal to vary the Rakaia Water Conservation Order to allow increased irrigation and hydro power generation from the river does not compromise it... Read more >>>

Trout release at Lake Whakamarino

Fish & Game Eastern Region will release 500 rainbows and 200 brown trout at the lake today...

Brand NZ: clean, green and clever - Dyson

Conservation needs to be integrated into our economic future as Brand New Zealand, clean, green and clever, says Labour's Conservation spokesperson Ruth Dyson...

Good trout fishing expected in tributaries

Anglers are gearing up for a good trout fishing season in the tributary rivers of Southland's major lakes...

Trout for Small Hydro Lake

Fish & Game Eastern Region will release 500 rainbows and 200 brown trout at the lake on Monday, November 7th...

Tragedy in river

A Gisborne family is angry and grieving after a two-year-old boy and his three-year-old relative were found face-down in the Taruheru River beside the Atkinson Street Reserve...

Trout bacteria tests show strain not typical

A strain of a bacterial fish disease found in an Otago trout hatchery is not the typical strain of the disease...

Gone fishing for more tourists

A good mate and I were yarning about trout fishing and what a fantastic country we live in...

Typical Kiwi summer expected

The NIWA National Climate Centre’s outlook for early summer, November 2011 to January 2012, indicates that temperatures are likely to be near average across all of the North Island and average or above average in the South Island...

Police suspend search for missing fisherman

The search for a man who disappeared while net fishing on Manukau Harbour near Auckland International Airport was suspended last night...

Fourth man drowns near Waikato River

The body of a man has been found after he was swept out to sea near the Waikato River mouth - the same place where three men drowned on Labour Day...

Another Tragic Drowning at Karioitahi Beach

Surf lifeguards from Kariaotahi Surf Life Saving Club have been involved this morning in the recovery of a body...

George Worker angling for good season

The Canterbury Wizards' newest recruit George Worker is hoping to catch more on the park than he did with his fly-fishing line at the weekend...

Clearing the waters

A former Taranaki journalist has come full circle as he begins writing a book that documents the revival of the province's waterways...

Competition celebrates opening of the high country lakes to fishing

November 5th not only hails the opening of the high country lakes to fishing but also the Hamills/ Composite Developments Coleridge Fishing Competition...

No tourism impact expected from bacteria in Mataura

The discovery of a bacteria affecting kanakana (lamprey) in the Mataura River and trout in a hatchery should not harm New Zealand's clean, green image...

Government Handling Of Oil Spill Likely Top Election Issue

The slow New Zealand Government response over the Rena oil spill earlier this month is likely to figure prominently in this election campaign...

Trout Boost for Lake Tutira

One year old fish are tagged at Fish & Game's hatchery in preparation for their release. One year old fish are tagged at Fish & Game's hatchery in preparation for their release...

Chance of dam rests on admissibility-of-evidence ruling

A High Court hearing yesterday signalled the next round of legal proceedings in the battle over whether a hydro-electric dam could be built on the Nevis River...

Labour's focus back on water

Canterbury's major earthquakes have diverted attention from water, the region's top pre-quake priority, Labour MP Brendon Burns says...

EDS favours Labour's Freshwater & High Country Policies

The Environmental Defence Society has expressed support for some elements of the Labour Party's Freshwater policy which was released over the weekend...

Forest & Bird welcomes Labour’s promise on wild rivers

Independent conservation organisation Forest & Bird welcomes the Labour Party’s policy to seek to protect the main parts of our remaining free-flowing rivers from being dammed ...

Acheron River Fishing Opportunities

In an effort to enhance fishing opportunities on Molesworth Station, Nelson Marlborough Fish & Game again requested that the Acheron Road be opened to provide for angler access to the lower part of the Acheron River during the early part of the season...

No sign of fishermen missing off Port Waikato

Rescuers are yet to find any sign of two men of three men swept out to sea at the mouth of the Waikato River...

Little fish lands big accolade

Years of dedication to building a seafood business that extends "from water to waiter" has brought Nelson's Donna Wells trans-Tasman recognition, and built a platform for further growth in the industry she loves...

Cautionary undercurrent to fish farming's lure

Kingfish and hapuku, fed and fattened in waters off the Coromandel coast, and served in the world's most exclusive restaurants. It's a scenario touted by an aquaculture industry with ambitions to become one of the country's top 10 export industries by 2025...

Search continues for missing

The search has resumed for two net fishermen washed out to sea south of Auckland yesterday...

'Strange' conditions may have spurred bacteria

The bacteria affecting kanakana in southern waterways may not be new to New Zealand...

Disease jumps from lamprey to trout

A disease that has been killing lamprey in Southland has now been found in a young trout in an Otago hatchery, raising fears the disease could wreak havoc in other species...

Huge Catch as Trout Contest Leaps in Popularity

The annual Lower Waikato Trout Fishing Contest 2011 turned up a “mammoth” catch of nearly 130 trout – after a big jump in the number of anglers competing...

Farmers not the focus on river issue

The battle over who is, and is not, polluting the Manawatu River is becoming as murky as the river itself, and for a change farmers are on the sidelines of the latest battle...

River health waits on brave leaders

Sixteen years ago, Greg Carlyon rafted the Mohaka River, from its headwaters in the Ahimanawa Range down 70 kilometres of what he describes as stunning, pristine natural beauty to its end in Hawke's Bay...

Plea to anglers to look for bug

Fishing organisations are asking anglers to keep an eye out for bacteria that has already infected trout in the Otago catchments...

Companies admit RMA breach

Two Taranaki companies have pleaded guilty to reduced charges following the death of hundreds of native fish in a New Plymouth stream...

Land Use Futures Board to be disbanded

A Rotorua board established to look into sustainable land uses to prevent nutrients entering Rotorua/Te Arawa lakes is to be disbanded...

Bacteria in hatchery trout

A juvenile trout from Otago Fish and Game's Macraes Hatchery has tested positive for the same bacterial disease causing illness and death in lampreys in Southland...

Fish release for kids day cancelled

Southland Fish & Game is very disappointed that the release of 200 trout and salmon into the Te Anau boat harbour for the annual children’s fishing event this labour weekend will have to be cancelled...

Hatchery fish detected with disease

Otago Fish & Game has had confirmation from MAF that a yearling trout from the Macraes Hatchery has been positively identified as being infected with the Aeromonas bacteria...

Second find of bacterial fish disease

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) today confirms that a single, juvenile trout from the Taieri River in Otago has tested positive for the same bacterial disease that is causing illness and death in kanakana (lamprey) in Southland...

TrustPower seeks amendments the Lake Coleridge Project

Environment Canterbury have publically notified an application for amendments to the Rakaia River Water Conservation Order from TrustPower seeking amendments to allow for the Lake Coleridge Project to use water for both hydro-electricity generation and irrigation purposes. Submissions must be received by Environment Canterbury by 5pm on Monday the 21st of November 2011. Read more at the Environment Canterbury website

Perfect conditions for Take A Kid Fishing event

This years’ Take A Kid Fishing event on Sunday was a big success with one of the best catch rates the organisers had experienced...

Groups to fight new salmon farms

Lobby groups are rallying to fight New Zealand King Salmon plans to create eight new salmon farms in the Marlborough Sounds...

Salmon farm sites nominated

New Zealand King Salmon has named locations in the Marlborough Sounds where it wants to set up eight new salmon farms...

Lifejackets essential for safer summer boating

As the summer boating season is set to kick off at Labour Weekend, Waikato Regional Council is reminding boaties about the need to carry enough lifejackets for everyone on board...

Water Shortage Direction for Lake Opuha

Environment Canterbury will notify a Water Shortage Direction for the Opihi River, South Canterbury, and its tributaries...

Unique tiger trout ready for chase

Fish and Game has released 150 tiger trout into Lake Rotoma - the only New Zealand lake which is stocked with the unique game fish with striped markings...

Bacterial disease affects lamprey eels

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry says a bacterial disease never seen before in New Zealand is leaving behind hundreds of deformed and dead kanakana or lamprey in Southland's Mataura river...

Fish & Game assisting MAF on lamprey disease

Fish & Game is very concerned about any new aquatic diseases or organisms in our environment and has been working closely with MAF on the disease affecting Southland kanakana/lamprey...

Mataura offers a good day

Last weekend most waters were in great order and with the fine weather since then it would be easy to assume things would be much the same this weekend...

Salmon at 'low' risk from germ

A bacteria previously unseen in New Zealand that has killed kanakana eels in Southland is unlikely to affect the multi-million dollar salmon industry, says New Zealand King Salmon chief executive Grant Rosewarne...

Commitment to River strong for Palmerston North City Council

When the Horizons Regional Council meets to discuss Palmerston North’s Waste Water Treatment Plant, there will be no representatives from the Palmerston North City Council present...

Tigers are on the loose at Lake Rotoma

Fish & Game has just released 150 Tiger Trout into Lake Rotoma – the only one in New Zealand that’s stocked with the unique game fish with stripy markings...

Lake fills to gills with trout

Each year more than 100,000 trout are released into Rotorua's lakes and in the last few days it was the turn of Lake Rerewhakaaitu to be stocked up...

Bacteria pose threat to fish

Bacteria previously unseen in New Zealand has killed kanakana in the Mataura River and have the potential to spread to trout and salmon...

1000 fish released for Take A Kid Fishing

This year over 1000 salmon will be released into the Groynes Lakes in Christchurch for the annual Take A Kid Fishing (TAKF) day on October the 16th. This is the most fish that have been released for the event which has been running for over twenty years now...

Disease affecting Southland Kanakana

Kanakana, or lamprey, in the Mataura River have become affected by a bacterial disease...

Upper Waitaki four rivers navigation safety bylaws amendment

Environment Canterbury has this week publicly notified its intention to amend its Navigation Safety Bylaws for the Dobson, Godley, Hopkins and Macaulay rivers in the Upper Waitaki Valley. It is inviting submissions from the public on the proposed changes...

Biggest Fish in Years for Trout Opening

Eastern Region Fish & Game officers were expecting to measure more than 1000 trout by the end of today – with some of the biggest fish in years weighed in as the new trout season got into full swing...

River carving under cliffs

Proposals for a $5.3 million project to realign the Manawatu River and turn the Anzac Cliffs into a hill have been presented to commissioners hearing the case to remove building restrictions at the cliff top...

Rivers show signs of good trout fishing prospects

One of Southland's most popular sports is set to kick off with a bang after a successful start to the whitebait season...

Anglers urged to check changes to fishing rules

Anglers are being warned to make sure they check changes to fishing regulations before they head to their nearest fishing spot...

Anglers Hook Top Condition Trout

Grey skies and choppy water didn’t deter hundreds of fishers who turned out this morning on Lake Tarawera – angling for a trophy fish at the start of the new trout season...

Unknown illness affecting kanakana in Mataura River

Hundreds of kanakana in the lower Mataura River appear to be affected by an unknown illness, raising concern that the fish are not currently suitable for human consumption...

Everybody's gone fishing

On an island nation such as ours, coastal fishing is akin to a rite of passage...

Smothering Gully restoration providing real benefits

Fencing and weed control at Smothering Gully, around 8km north-east of Waipara in North Canterbury, is providing real environmental benefits including protecting water quality and biodiversity in the Omihi Stream...

Share the blame, says Dairy NZ

Dairy NZ has welcomed aspects of the auditor-general's water quality report out this week, but urges a balanced and fair approach to addressing the issues raised...

High Hopes for New Trout Season on East Coast

There are high hopes for East Coast lakes at the start of the new trout season on Saturday, October 1st - with Lake Waikaremoana on a path to recovery...

Festival opening to season

This weekend marks the opening of the trout fishing season on Rotorua's lakes and Lake Tarawera's Landing Cafe is marking the occasion with a festival...

Farmers unhappy at OAG water report

Federated Farmers is questioning what value the Office of the Auditor General report, ‘Managing freshwater quality: challenges for regional councils’, will add to informed debate...

Auditor-Gen report shows need for stronger water regulation

A report by the Office of the Auditor-General highlights the need for strong national direction to clean up our freshwater, direction which the Government has so-far failed to provide, the Green Party said today...

Waikato Regional Council comments on national water report

Waikato Regional Council chairman Peter Buckley says the Auditor-General’s comments released today on Waikato water quality highlight the issues the council has been working to address...

PNCC in denial over river

Three months on from the official launch of the Manawatu River Accord Action Plan, we are seeing one of the major polluters of the river continue to try to muddy the waters over its failure to protect river life...

River pollution debate shut down

Debate about Palmerston North City Council's role in polluting the Manawatu River was closed down at its monthly meeting last night after Councillor Chris Teo-Sherrell ran out of time to finish saying his piece...

Passing helicopter spots stranded fishermen along Kildala River

Three men from New Zealand and their fishing guide are safe and sound after a harrowing ordeal last Thursday...

150,000 fish released for 150yr commemoration

Fish & Game West coast are currently releasing 150,000 sportsfish in commemoration of 150yrs of Acclimatisation in NZ...

Prize Package Great Incentive for Family Fishing

Fish & Game’s Eastern Region is offering the Kilwell package to promote its family fishing licences...

New Trout Fishing Season begins soon

For many, October the first is the most important day on the sport fishing calendar – the day the long-awaited trout season begins again...

Visitor fishing licence proposal

A proposal to charge international anglers more to fish in some of the world's best recreational fisheries does not go far enough, Otago Fish and Game councillor Ray Grubb says...

Bigger Fish Tipped for New Trout Season

Eastern Fish & Game Officers are tipping better prospects for catching some hefty fish on opening day, compared with the start of the trout fishing season last year...

Anglers 'need to change methods' to catch trout

The fish are out there but anglers are just not pursuing them the right way, says a Taupo fishing store owner...

Tainui join on fishery management

A new era in New Zealand fisheries management starts on 22 September when regulations providing for joint government and iwi management of fishstocks in the lower Waikato River come into effect...

New rules for intensively farmed stock around natural waterways

Farmers are being advised to begin planning how they will manage their stock to comply with new planning rules which come into force in June next year...

Anglers oppose upper Oreti cycle trail

A group of anglers are trying to get part of a national cycleway altered in the south, with one of them accusing the regional project manager of having a conflict of interest...

Website rises to lure of trout fishing fans

Rugby World Cup visitors could hook themselves a prized trout as well as bag an experience of a lifetime...

Fish & Game angles for tourists

Fish & Game NZ is helping Rugby World Cup visitors go trout fishing between matches with the launch of a new website...

DOC seeks views on non-resident angling licences

Just released is a discussion document prepared jointly by the Department of Conservation and the New Zealand Fish and Game Council which sets out a possible option to establish a non-resident (i.e. not a New Zealand resident) sports fishing licence at a higher licence fee than for resident anglers.

Read more at the DOC website.

Second body found in Lake Arapuni

Searchers at Lake Arapuni, near Putaruru, have found a second body...

Three fishing trips end in tragedy

Three fishing trips have ended in tragedy – two West Coast whitebaiters died and a body was recovered from Lake Arapuni, near Tokoroa...

Pheasant Release Marks 150 Years of Fish & Game Work

One hundred and fifty years of work to introduce and manage fish and game in New Zealand is being marked in a special way this weekend...

Cup visitors invited to 'Fish Away'

Fish & Game NZ has launched a new website to make it easy for Rugby World Cup visitors to enjoy the “ultimate Kiwi experience” between matches – fishing for large trout in our stunning scenic surroundings...

Fly Fishermen Flock To Ennis For Festival

Keen New Zealand fly fishermen are flocking to the 9th Annual Ennis on the Madison Fly Fishing Festival in Madison County...

Fisherman's family prepares for worst

The son of missing fisherman James Roberts has made a mercy dash from Afghanistan back home to England as mystery and speculation swirl around the disappearance of his father on Lake Arapuni, near Putaruru...

Father's Day gift key to 'Family Fun Outdoors

No need to fish around for a great Father’s Day present when you can buy Dad a gift that’ll foster some healthy, outdoor family time – a fishing licence for the new trout and salmon season...

Trout poachers caught in act

Fish & Game Officers carrying out checks at a local Rotorua Trout spawning stream on Friday afternoon (26th August) located and apprehended 2 men aged 17 and 40 yrs, and a 17 year old woman, who had allegedly been poaching spawning trout...

Health warning after sewage discharge in river

Recreational fishermen are being warned to avoid fishing the lower reaches of the Waimakariri after heavy rain or snow fall...

Sewerage Pollution Impede Fishing in Waimakariri River

According to reports, Dr Alistair Humphrey, Canterbury's, Chief Medical Health Officer, recently claimed that due to the heavy rain and snowfall, Waimakariri River certainly became high alerted against the sewage contamination risk...

Major milestone for Canterbury Water Management Strategy

The Hurunui-Waiau Zone Implementation Programme has been received and formally endorsed by both Hurunui District Council and Environment Canterbury...

Single Dam Site Has Most Potential

The most recent results from the Ruataniwha water storage project feasibility study have identified that the best route forward is to concentrate on a single dam site...

NZ Salmon research makes a splash in Canada

Research led by a New Zealand scientist has shown that salmon farming in Canada may be having a negative impact on wild populations due to the spread of parasites...

Fish and game bounty showcased to millions

New Zealand is set to be portrayed to tens of millions of US TV viewers as a land of adventure where you can ‘catch and cook’ all sorts of delectable wild game, freshwater fish and seafood...

Fly fishing guide rediscovers joy

Grzleweski writes: "When you turn your passion into a business, begin peddling the very thing that you cherish, it's like sending your loved one into a ring for a prize fight...

Global film festival brings fly fishing exploits to big screen

Fishermen are in for a treat when the annual RISE Fly Fishing Film Festival visits Auckland...

Aquaculture law heralds expansion

A new aquaculture law passed last night should end a "Mexican standoff" in the seafood industry and bring major benefits to the region, Nelson MP Nick Smith said today...

Act helps fish farm expansion

A new aquaculture bill passed last night could mean salmon farms are approved in areas of the Marlborough Sounds where they are currently forbidden...

Kawarau River deaths spark coroner’s call for lifejackets

The Otago/Southland coroner is recommending to Maritime New Zealand that lifejackets should be made compulsory for anyone in a small boat...

A Message For Whitebaiters: Didymo

The Department of Conservation would like to remind whitebaiters to check, clean and dry their nets and other gear when moving between waterways. This will help slow the spread of freshwater pests and potentially didymo during the whitebait season...

1000 trout to be delivered to Wellington’s Capital Trout Centre

To the relief of Fish & Game and hundreds of young anglers, the severe weather which threatened to derail the delivery of 1000 trout to Wellington’s Capital Trout Centre is on the wane and the release will go ahead tomorrow as planned...

Freedom campers face $200 instant penalty

Freedom campers could find themselves paying an instant $200 fine from next month if the "poo police" find them in an area where freedom camping has been banned...

Parliament pushes through aquaculture changes

Controversial legislation which establishes an independent arbitrator for the aquaculture industry is expected to be passed by Parliament under urgency today...

NZ King Salmon supports expansion bill

New Zealand King Salmon would happily give up its water space if a commercial fishing quota holder could create more wealth for the country using the same area, chief executive Grant Rosewarne says...

NZ 'acclimatised' to British tastes

The uniquely New Zealand system of community ownership of wild gamebirds and sports fish was born in Waikato 150 years ago...

Spin Fishing for Trout

Many anglers do not have the time or desire to learn how to fly fish. They may well have the desire to catch a trout though...

Walkaround should catch on

Walkaround-style boats have not, traditionally, proved very popular in New Zealand waters...

Crayfish tops action on lakes

Settled weather has allowed boats to venture out into the Hauraki Gulf in search of work-ups, with some good results...

Strange days on Lake Taupo

Good news for Waikato anglers – Fish & Game has taken another step towards trebling the number of trout being released into Lake Arapuni – the district’s most popular sport fishing lake...

Hi-tech camera benefits fishing movies

Southlanders had the chance to witness a fishing film-industry first this week...

Big Boost for Lake Arapuni Trout Numbers

Good news for Waikato anglers – Fish & Game has taken another step towards trebling the number of trout being released into Lake Arapuni – the district’s most popular sport fishing lake...

Aquaculture rule proposals upset

A lawyer for the group representing scallop and finfish quota owners in the the top of the south has blasted government plans to put aquaculture expansion ahead of commercial fishing...

River back from brink

The Whanganui River is being nursed back to health since the commissioning of the city's wastewater treatment plant...

Waitaki River Boost for salmon programme

A project to increase salmon numbers in the Waitaki River has received a boost with a grant from the Community Trust of Otago to the Waitaki Riparian Enhancement Society...

NZACA elects new president

Fielding’s Brent Rolston is the new president of the NZ Angling and Casting Association, filling the vacancy created by incumbent Janine Slater moving offshore...

Conservationists using covert methods to catch poachers

Conservationists are using sophisticated technology in the fight against illegal trout fishing...

Draft plan for river clean-up published

People in Hawke's Bay with a concern about farms polluting two rivers in the region have until the last week of August to make submissions on the issue...

Debris creates boating hazard on lake

A large raft of logs and floating debris is causing a boating hazard on Lake Monowai...

Wainuiomata: a new attraction?

Wainuiomata has just released a Rugby World Cup promotional video touting itself as the next must-visit tourist destination, highlighting pristine trout fishing rivers...

Poacher Cam Effective Tool in Battle Against Trout Thieves

Rob a service station and you'd expect to be filmed by a security camera – but who would think trout poachers would find themselves on ‘Poacher Cam?'...

Economic progress not green light for water pollution

“It saddens me that in the name of ‘economic progress’ we are prepared to let our rivers and lakes be so badly degraded,” said UnitedFuture environment and outdoors spokesman, Doug Stevens, in reaction to Fish and Game’s report on the state of our rivers and lakes...

Water pollution 'will worsen'

Already polluted lakes and rivers will only get worse under a flawed freshwater policy, a new report warns...

Minister launches giant wetland project

Minister for the Environment Dr Nick Smith launched a 3000 square metre floating wetland in Lake Rotoehu as part of the Rotorua Lakes restoration programme...

Hard work for a farm holiday

Farming tourism is like farming in general. It's not always easy to make a profit and it's subject to global trends… Nokomai Station is an example of farmers have kept their two businesses separate while utilising the land and surround areas…

Strategy for Taharua and Upper Mohaka Rivers

A proposed strategy for improving water quality in the upper Mohaka River and the Taharua tributary is now available for comment by the public...

Native species and trout reurning to 2 Northland lakes

Fish numbers are on the rise again in two small Northland lakes that used to be a food-basket for tangata whenua...

Fish & Game Hails Kai Iwi Lakes Trout Turnaround

Fish and Game Northland says the Kai Iwi lakes have turned a corner for trout fishing – with the latest fish weighed in the biggest recorded since the early nineties...

No health issues raised by Opuha sampling

Environment Canterbury's investigations into allegations that agricultural chemicals may have been buried under the Opuha Dam, South Canterbury, during its construction have not raised health or recreation concerns...

Meridian grant for Southland rivers

Meridian Energy has continued its commitment to rivers in the Te Anau Basin with a one-off grant to assist Environment Southland's river management work...

Network of ponds to provide fishing for kids

Plans have been hatched to dig a series of ponds on public land close to the Waimea River at Appleby and stock them with trout and salmon ready to catch next year...

Water, water everywhere, but only a few drops stored

Speech by Bruce Wills, Federated Farmers President, to the 2nd Annual Agricultural and Horticultural Outlook Summit...

The $200m plan to irrigate the Bay

Hawke's Bay Regional Council's water storage plan is ambitious, expensive and complex, but council staff say the region needs something on this scale to manage water in Central Hawke's Bay...

Consultation open for Upper Mohaka Draft Strategy

Hawke's Bay Regional Council is seeking public comment on a draft strategy for the future health of the upper Mohaka River and its Taharua tributary...

Read about the draft strategy at the regional council's webpage

Trout Fishers Seek Politicians' Answers on Rivers

A national trout-fishing advocacy wants answers from political parties on question marks over water quality and public access to rivers and fishing...

Four Bay dairy farms fined for polluting

Bay of Plenty dairy farmers were reminded of the serious penalties for polluting after four were prosecuted last week for various degrees of contamination to waterways...

Bread Fishing for Trout Earns Big Fine

Fish & Game officers say the latest fines handed down for trout fishing with no licence and using bread for bait - sends a strong message to would-be poachers...

Hutt River tap turns for Te Marua upgrade

A controversial plan to take more water from the Hutt River for the region's taps has been given the green light...

Collaboration the key to handling big land and water issues

Close collaboration between all stakeholders - including iwi, farmers, the agriculture industry and local councils - will be the key to successfully addressing land and water quality issues in the region...

Crackdown on dirty contractors

Two new boat washdown facilities at Tokaanu Marina, to help boaties protect the Taupo fishery and avoid spreading weeds from lake to lake, have been greeted with enthusiasm by boat users...

Geoff Thomas: Fine for fish, frustrating for fishers

Weather has been the bane of those wanting to put the boat in the water and head out for a fish during the past week...

Fishing a hook for Pink Floyd rock legend

Pink Floyd rock legend Roger Waters has two reasons to return to Kiwi shores - music and fishing...

Tough work to bag Big Four

Any motorist on the main road running through Te Puna, north of Tauranga, a couple of weeks ago would have wondered what was going on as a procession of utes and trailers adorned with stags' antlers and wild boars' heads lined up along the road...

Check, Clean and Dry slows pest

A novel marketing approach has helped to engage people in a campaign to slow down the spread of a major waterway pest...

Minster sides with scientists over trout and stouts

Environment Minister Nick Smith has sided with scientists in a debate over whether introduced trout should be seen as the stoats of the waterways for destruction they have caused in fresh water habitats...

Don't blame trout: it's dirty dairying

The description by Federated Farmers' outgoing dairy section head Lachlan McKenzie of trout as freshwater stoats, and his attempt to portray them as a danger to our waterways, is yet another attempt to shift the blame from where it should lie - with dirty dairying practices...

Are trout to blame for declining water quality?

Scientists are questioning claims by a prominent dairy industry representative, suggesting trout are a 'disastrous species' -- no better than 'freshwater stoats' -- and that farmers have been unfairly blamed for their impacts on declining water quality...

Another beauty to boost snapper stats

Abundant stocks of giant snapper could be Taranaki's newest attraction, with a remarkable number finding their way on to fishermen's lines in the past couple of months...

Trout damage claims rejected

Freshwater scientists have rejected claims by a prominent dairy farmer that introduced trout are "freshwater stoats" and could be doing more damage to streams and rivers than dairy farming...

Cows culprits, not trout, dairy head told

Freshwater scientists have rejected claims by a prominent dairy farmer that introduced trout are "freshwater stoats" and could be doing more damage to streams and rivers than dairy farming...

Dairy effluent compliance continues to improve

The rate of dairy effluent consent compliance in Canterbury has continued to improve over the past year according to preliminary figures released by Environment Canterbury...

MAF marks Biosecurity Month of July

The New Zealand Biosecurity Institute has designated July as “Biosecurity month” to raise awareness of the work done by those involved in protecting New Zealand’s natural environment from pests and diseases...

Consultation open for Taupo Sports Fishery Management Plan

The Taupo Sports Fishery Management Plan (TSFMP) discussion document has now been released. The purpose of the discussion document is to encourage discussion and invite suggestions in preparation for the 2011 review of the Taupo Sports Fishery Management Plan (TSFMP)

Read the discussion document at the DOC website.

Locals praised for Lake Okareka progress

Nutrient reduction targets look likely to have been met to improve water quality in Lake Okareka, thanks to valuable input from the local community, last week’s Rotorua Te Arawa Lakes Strategy Group meeting heard...

Popular Trout Lakes Close for Winter Rest

The season for boat fishing is drawing to a close on three of Rotorua’s lakes Thursday, (June 30th, midnight) – but there’s still plenty of other sport fishing opportunities...

Action Plan Approved for Lake Tikitapu

The Rotorua Te Arawa Lakes Strategy Group has approved an Action Plan for Lake Tikitapu (Blue Lake)...

Didymo contained for second year

Recent tests for didymo in 19 Fiordland National Park rivers have come back negative, a pleasing result for Fish and Game and Department of Conservation (Doc) staff...

Monitoring to continue after Awakino spill

Environmental monitoring of the Awakino river and coastal marine area is set to continue after the end of an oil spill clean-up involving the Waikato Regional Council...

Rule for success: Location, location, location

The best place to find snapper is close around the rocks, which is good news for shore-based fishermen as well as those in small boats...

Awakino oil spill clean-up makes further progress

Waikato Regional Council will today be assessing the need to continue with the clean-up operation in the Awakino River following Wednesday’s oil spill...

Volunteers help care for region

Hundreds of Bay of Plenty residents willingly give their time and expertise to protect and enhance our environment and to help keep our harbours and lakes safe...

Taharua river still deteriorating

The condition of a picturesque North Island river continues to deteriorate despite concerns raised more than two years ago about the effect of dairy intensification...

Anglers cry foul at commercial fishers

A popular harbour where generations of Coromandel residents have learnt to fish is being stripped bare by commercial operators, alarmed locals say...

Council may pass on salmon bid

Marlborough District councillors appear to be leaning towards the opinion that a board of inquiry should hear the application by King Salmon to expand its operations in the Sounds...

Bid for on-boat hunting on lakes

Queenstown fishing charter company is aiming to expand into hunting activities by introducing on-the-boat shooting on Lakes Wakatipu, Wanaka and Hawea...

Public Hearing on Matahina Hydro Electric Power Scheme
An independent panel of commissioners will hear submissions next week on TrustPower's resource consent applications to continue to operate the Matahina Hydro Electric Power Scheme...

Time to focus on water quality

The National Party won some plaudits in Opposition five years ago when it said it had seen the light on the environment and would now approach policy development with "blue-green" vision...

Manawatu River eyes up clean-up fund

The Manawatu River will be cleaned faster if its leaders are successful in their bid for the Government’s Freshwater Clean-Up fund...

Minister welcomes Manawatu River action plan

Environment Minister Nick Smith today visited Foxton to launch an action plan instigated by the Manawatu River Leaders Accord for cleaning up the Manawatu River...

'Check, Clean, Dry' effective at stopping the spread of didymo in Fiordland

Recent tests for didymo in 19 rivers in Fiordland National Park have all come back negative, a result that has pleased staff at Fish & Game...

Dirty dumping ruins the fishing

Connull Lang, originally from Hawke's Bay and now living overseas, was looking for places to fly fish when he came across animal carcasses in two separate places along the Tukituki River...

No accord on issue of dams ban

Mediation between the two main parties in the battle over whether dams should be banned on the Nevis River has collapsed...

More than 45,000 Trout Released into North Island Lakes

North Island lake trout stocks have received a huge boost – with Fish & Game releases topping the 45,000 mark, and more set down for spring...

Kaitime Takes Close Look at Trout Breeding

Top-rating Maori Television show Kaitime has turned its cameras on trout – and the people who breed them by the thousand to re-stock the country’s lakes...

Bugs’ Boost for Fish & Game’s Trout Breeding

Veteran fly fisher ‘Bugs,’ aka John Wilson, is generous with tips for novices on how to fish his favourite spot – Tarawera Landing...

Lake Tutira trout release makes fine fish tale

Fish stocks in Lake Tutira have been boosted with the release of thousands of trout yesterday...

Historic hatchery comes to light

Breeding ponds for brown trout, dating back to 1868 have been discovered in Otago...

River mystery solved

Scientists discover how "Didymo" algae bloom in pristine waters with few nutrients...

Waikato District Lakes and wetlands agreement to be signed

A new memorandum of agreement (MOA) aimed at helping better protect lakes and wetlands in Waikato District is being signed on Tuesday 7 June at 8am at the Twin Lakes Event Centre in Huntly...

Safety overhaul will 'end' many tourism businesses

The New Zealand Professional Fishing Guides Association says new tourism safety initiatives will force many smaller operators to close due to a spike in safety costs...

Fishermen benefiting from ugly weather

The west coast usually fishes very well, and it is more a question of being able to access it...

30 May 2011

Taupo trout upsurge predicted

Local anglers and the Conservation Department, is cautiously heralding an upsurge in the Taupo trout fishery...

Taupo boaties face doubling of fees

Mooring and ramp fees could more than double for thousands of Taupo boaties to help pay the annual $1.5 million rent of the lake from its owners, Ngati Tuwharetoa...

24 May 2011

Fish blamed for water pollution

A Waikato University scientist believes that by diminishing koi carp numbers, the quality of water in Waikato lakes and rivers can improve without forcing farmers to reduce their fertiliser use...

Improving our waterways

Wthout clear national water quality standards to keep the effects of a massive expansion of intensive farming in check, there is a risk that pollutants will flush off an even greater swathe of intensively farmed land, causing the condition of lakes and rivers to get worse, not better...

Lake Taupo protection makes solid progress

Efforts to protect Lake Taupo by reducing nitrogen inputs to the lake are proving to be highly successful to date...

Net a trout at contest

Some were a little groggy but Lake Pupuke's cold water soon woke up the 1100 trout released into it on Wednesday.The two-year-old trout, including 1000 rainbow and 100 brown, made the morning trip from Fish and Game's Rotorua hatchery...

Hundreds Of Trout To Be Released At 'Urban Fishing' Spot

Fish & Game is preparing to release hundreds of catchable trout into Lake Pupuke on Auckland’s North Shore. The 1000 rainbows and 100 brown trout will be released at Sylvan Park at around mid-day on 27 April...

Trout festival proves popular

The Ngongotaha Trout Festival looks set to become an annual event after the success of the inaugural festival which attracted hundreds at the weekend....

Tough job to balance Kiwis' needs

Last month Timberlands announced a system whereby recreational users must register and pay an annual $50 fee before they can enter the forest in the latest of a number of restrictive moves by Timberlands that has raised the tempers of North Islanders and the ire of politicians like UnitedFuture's Peter Dunne...

Alligator weed found on eastern Bay farm

Bay of Plenty Regional Council staff are working with an eastern Bay of Plenty landowner to remove and control an infestation of the aggressive pest plant alligator weed from farmland near Taneatua...

Govt Fails to Provide Independent Environmental Authority

New Zealand’s pristine natural environment is something we should protect and treat with respect Labour’s environment spokesperson Charles Chauvel said today...

Lake Water Quality Society Symposium: Keynote Address

Read the speech from Environment Minister, Dr Nick Smith at the Lake Water Quality Symposium in Rotorua.

Nevis River appeals back on agenda

Environment Court appeals against a special tribunal ruling prohibiting damming on the Nevis River are back on the agenda...

Dairy compliance still an ongoing challenge for Bay of Plenty

Routine farm dairy effluent compliance monitoring in the Bay of Plenty has again highlighted the ongoing challenges of consistent compliance across the region...

Dunne disappointed with Central North Island 1080 drop

It is disappointing to learn of an aerial 1080 drop near Lake Otamangakau in the Central North Island just a month out from duck shooting season”, said UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne. ”Lake Otamangakau is world famous for producing trophy trout and is also a popular destination for game bird hunters...

Concern at scarcity of trout in Lake Taupo

The Department of Conservation (DoC) is concerned about a decline in the number of trout in Lake Taupo....

Halswell River damage minor

The 22 February earthquake caused some existing river bank cracking and slumping deterioration in a few areas but there were no instances of significant new slumping and river bed liquefaction appears to be substantially less...

Resources rise to nab poachers

As winter approaches Fish and Game rangers are gearing up to target poachers in Rotorua fisheries.Eastern Region Fish and Game officer Anthony van Dorp said in the 2009/2010 year 73 people were caught poaching by officers in the eastern region, the majority of those being in Rotorua.

Didymo-free Manawatu praised

Despite its many other ailments, didymo is one unwanted organism Manawatu River is without, and Horizons Regional Council says that is thanks to the efforts of waterway users who have taken the "clean, check, dry" initiative seriously...

Dunne: New ministry must do more for recreational fishing

UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne has greeted the decision to merge Fisheries with Agriculture and Forestry with a call for the new organisation to be more responsive to the needs of recreational fishers...

Weed cordon installed at Lake Okataina

Bay of Plenty Regional Council has installed a weed cordon around the boat ramp at the main beach on Lake Okataina. The weed cordon has been specifically designed to prevent the spread of aquatic pests that are present in nearby lakes...

Easter's Ngongotaha Trout Festival

A Reggae concert and a trout-fishing competition will see Ngongotaha transformed into one big street party during Easter Weekend as part of the first Ngongotaha Trout Festival....

Turangi aquarium snubs trout

A new freshwater aquarium in Turangi has banned the region's famed trout in favour of a range of native fish species....

River and lake levels warning

Environment Waikato has issued an alert about rising river and lake levels following a heavy rain warning from MetService...

Christchurch earthquake:Latest updates

There are now 92 bodies in a temporary morgue set up by police in Christchurch, Prime Minister John Key says....

Preventive algae treatment for Lake Rotoiti

Bay of Plenty Regional Council is treating Okawa Bay on Lake Rotoiti today with a product to prevent potentially toxic blue-green algae blooming on the lake...

Zealandia sanctuary to poison dam to clear trout

The naturally-occurring chemical rotenone will be used next week at the top of the Zealandia sanctuary's upper dam to eradicate about 100 brown trout that are cannibalising native fish.

The current foreshore and seabed debate

Since this issue first arose in 2003, it has been UnitedFuture's constant position that the only durable solution to the foreshore and seabed issue rests with it being held as public domain for all New Zealanders.

Iconic wetlands in jeopardy

The preservation of the Waituna Lagoon, which is also a popular brown-trout fishing destination, has been made a priority project by the regional council...

Good progress made on lake water quality

This week’s Operations Monitoring and Regulation Committee heard that achievements included significantly improving Lake Rotoiti’s water quality, completing all the actions in Lake Okaro’s Action Plan, securing half the land use change required for the Lake Okareka Catchment and commissioning the Puarenga Stream phosphorus-locking plant...

Shag River dam investigation grant

A grant has been made towards an investigation into the possibility of putting a dam on the Shag River inland from Dunback to supply potable water and irrigation to the Dunback and Shag River district...

Mokau power scheme consents granted

Resource consents related to a King Country Energy (KCE) proposal to build a new hydro dam on the Mokau River have been granted by Environment Waikato (EW) and the Waitomo District Council (WDC).

Dam blamed for river ruin

Fisherman Ray Brokenshire fears it will be too late in five years to save the Opihi River from the effects of degradation...

Defend property rights or become nation of serfs

An opinion piece by ACT member Deborah Coddington who argues "it is the legitimate property right of an owner to sell the exclusive access for fishing"

Kiwis upset over "exclusive" fishing rights

New Zealand's anglers are being shut out of top fishing spots by businesses cutting expensive deals with private landowners, angry fishermen say...

Hawke's Bay locals shut out of top fishing spots

Local anglers are being locked out of some top fishing spots because guides pay for exclusive rights, a local fisherman says...

Stance annoys anglers

A Federated Farmers defence of a "fundamental principle of land ownership – the right to exclude access" – has drawn flak from anglers...

Editorial: Access to waterways too precious to lose

New Zealand's rivers, lakes and coastline are this country's commons. Allowing them to be closed to public access for private gain is not what Queen Victoria and Governor Hobson had in mind in 1840, and it is not what New Zealanders expect today...

Anglers upset with new restrictions

Malcolm Francis is a catch-and-release fisherman who's been angling for trout in this region for 15 years. He says the best thing about fishing is the wilderness experience, and New Zealand's waterways should be open to all, not blocked off by commercial tourism deals...

NZ anglers angered by loss of prime spots

plus comments by readers

Local fishers are growing increasingly concerned New Zealand's best fishing spots are being hijacked by wealthy foreigners, an anglers' group says...

Exclusive deals lock out Kiwi anglers

Anglers to fight exclusive deals to fishing spots

Kiwi anglers are being "locked out" of top fishing spots by businesses cutting expensive deals with private landowners, angry fishermen say...

Dominion Post

Nelson Mail

Further probe on Lee Valley Dam

Public consultation has been delayed on the much-needed Lee Valley Dam to supply water to the Waimea Plains with more investigation ordered into options on how it will be owned and operated...

Public access is not for sale

While the media’s attention is firmly focused on the perceived threat to the seabed and foreshore, there is a far more real threat to our public right of access going largely unnoticed...

Farmers band together to save their lake

Farmers in the Lake Rerewhakaaitu catchment are working together to reduce nutrient flows from their farms flowing into their lake...

Vintage fish gear up for sale

Mark Vincent is putting his whole fishing collection up for sale which Webb's auction house calls "the most comprehensive lifetime collection of fishing gear ever seen in this country..."

Judge sets mediation in Nevis case

Mediation might cut down the "extensive cost" of preparing evidence for the next round of the fight over whether damming should be prohibited on the Nevis River, the Environment Court was told in Queenstown yesterday.

Scrubbing the river clean

Senior reporter Lee Matthews spent a morning in the Oroua River, finding out why the things that grow on rocks matter in terms of water quality – and that water quality is what matters when it comes to using the river...

Anglers refused access to Rangitaiki river over summer

The blocking of access to a world-renowned trout-fishing river has created a worrying precedent, say anglers and tourism operators...

Algal bloom no risk to improving lake health

An algal bloom on Rotorua’s Lake Okaro which led to a health warning late last week does not mean the lake is deteriorating again, according to Bay of Plenty Regional Council...

Commissioners consider imposing moratorium for Waiau River

Environment Canterbury Commissioners will consider, at a Council Meeting on Wednesday November 24, 2010, imposing a moratorium on the Waiau River catchment to take, dam, divert or use water...

Helicopter monitoring flights happening again

Environment Waikato says helicopter monitoring of compliance with effluent management rules is resuming again after being suspended because of an extended period of wet weather over winter...

New plans to harness Shag River

The irrigation and hydro-electric power-generating potential of sites inland from Dunback is back on the radar...

Environmental Protection Authority Bill introduced

New Zealand needs an effective Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to provide efficient national level regulation of environmental issues, Environment Minister Nick Smith said today in introducing to Parliament a bill to create the new Crown Entity.

River pollution policy 'a year away'

Sweeping changes needed to help clean up New Zealand's waterways could still be a year away, says the chairman of a group tasked with advising the Government on reforms.

Fly-tying has innovator hooked

Southern artists have been making a name for themselves internationally for years and now, from his tiny fly fishing shop in Athol, Stu Tripney is making ripples worldwide for his own style of art...the art of fly tying....

Locals, anglers rue loss of top fishing spot

Access to one of New Zealand's top fishing rivers, the Rangitaiki, has been closed - upsetting local tourism operators and anglers throughout the country.

Public Meetings for water measurement regulations

Water consent holders and other interested parties are invited to a public meeting on Thursday November 4 at either Amberley or Cheviot to hear about the introduction of new national regulations on the measurement and reporting of water takes...

Canterbury Dairy Report 2009-10 season

Environment Canterbury has released the Canterbury Dairy Report for the 2009-2010 season which showed 59 percent of dairy farms were fully compliant with their dairyshed effluent discharge conditions, up from 43 percent in the previous season...

Focus on effluent solutions

The dairy industry and Environment Waikato are implementing a range of actions aimed at helping improve compliance with effluent management rules, says the latest edition of Environment Waikato’s Farmcare publication...

Upper Waitaki community members urged to apply for committee

People interested in applying for appointment to the Upper Waitaki zone committee have until Friday, November 5 to complete and submit their expression of Interest form.

Listen to interview with Peter Dunne about Rangitaiki access

Marcus Lush speaks to United Future Leader Peter Dunne about Timberlands' moves to restrict access to the Murupara forest.

MPs vow to fight for Murupara

A meeting in Murupara today to protest against Timberlands' ban on public access to Kaingaroa Forest and its lakes and rivers has ended with two MPs promising to fight for it to be lifted...

Lake Okataina infected

Sloppy boaties are being told to tighten up their housekeeping after the noxious lake weed hornwort was discovered in Lake Okataina this year...

Fed Farmers' big bellyflop into water issue

Opinion

...the final report of the Land and Water Forum, released this week... [generated a] a left-field reaction from Federated Farmers, whose capacity for disappointingly quixotic contributions to public policy debates was once again on display...

Hurunui-Waiau Water Zone Committee appoints Chair

David Eder, who has half a century’s knowledge of irrigation, has been appointed Chair of the new Hurunui-Waiau Zone Committee with John Faulkner from Culverden appointed Deputy Chair.

Keep Our Lakes Pest Free This Season

Boaties and anglers in the Bay of Plenty are reminded to clean their boats before taking them into new lakes or rivers in the region for the opening of the trout fishing season...

Tougher controls on water likely

Tougher standards on the quality and use of rivers, lakes and streams are likely after a report highlighted major problems in the management of New Zealand's most precious resource... a report from the Land and Water Forum ....lists 53 recommendations for improving freshwater quality, allocation, use and storage after a review begun last year...

National standards for waterways urged

The Government has been urged to set national standards to combat pollution in rivers and other freshwater sources after a lengthy review of the way New Zealand's waterways are managed...

Water Conservation Order (WCO) Legacy Not for Sale

Gary Taylor, chairman of the Environmental Defence Society, provides a background to Water Conservation Orders and underlines the critical battles currently taking place to preserve their status.

River levels could be elevated for some time

Environment Waikato says the levels of the Waikato and Waipa rivers could stay elevated for an extended period due to recent conditions....

River damming appeals all different

Three very different appeals to the Nevis River special tribunal's report have now been lodged with the Environment Court. Whitewater New Zealand, New Zealand and Otago Fish and Game councils, and power company Pioneer Generation have all focused on different elements of the report...

Study forces rethink of Waitaki power project

Geological issues have led to a rethink of a proposed major new power scheme on the lower Waitaki River.

Tongariro team gets top Weedbusters award

A group which works hard to improve the Tongariro River environment has won this year’s top Regional Weedbusters Award for the Waikato....

Record fine for Thurston pollution

Controversial developer Ken Thurston's appeal against record pollution fines has been quashed by a High Court judge in a decision released yesterday. The judge blasted Thurston's "reckless" dumping practices, adding that he was "polluting for profit".

Manawatu River Leaders’ Forum needs flexibility

Federated Farmers is saddened by the Manawatu River Leaders’ Forum resolving to exclude it from future meetings...

Ohau Channel Diversion Wall Proving A Big Success

The Ohau Channel Diversion Wall in Lake Rotoiti is proving a major success diverting nutrients from Lake Rotorua and improving the water quality, Environment Minister Nick Smith says.

31 Aug 2010

DOC seeks to put toxin in waterways to kill trout

The Conservation Department has applied for resource consent to introduce the natural toxin rotenone to the upper Karori reservoir in Wellington and the streams flowing into it this summer in an attempt to eradicate introduced brown trout.

Rare fish found in Lake Okareka stream

A rare native fish population known as koaro has been discovered in a tributary stream of Lake Okareka...

Public access under threat –Peter Dunne

UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne has warned that the public’s access to public resources such as fishing rivers and game areas are increasingly coming under threat, and without proper intervention will be lost forever.

ECAN approve submission on Hurunui River

At today's 9th Environment Canterbury Commissioners meeting, Commissioners agreed to lodge a submission on the revised Hurunui Water Conservation Order (WCO).

26 Aug 2010

Order bans dams on Nevis River

Hydro-electric dams will be banned on the Nevis River after amendments to a Water Conservation Order were made by a special tribunal appointed by the Environment Ministry in order to protect the extremely rare native fish species Gollum galaxiid, or Gollum.

Workplan and timeframes for Environment Canterbury outlined

Environment Canterbury’s commissioners have released the letter provided to Environment Minister Nick Smith and Local Government Minister Rodney Hide outlining the delivery of agreed outcomes and key milestones and reflects areas of priority for the Commissioners between now and October, 2013...

Group rues ruling by commissioner

A community group is "very disappointed" Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Dr Jan Wright will not investigate minimum flows set by the Otago Regional Council for two coastal North Otago waterways.

Concerns about town-country divide

The dairy industry is launching a $2 million campaign to try to make Kiwis as proud of its world-beating accomplishments as they are of the All Blacks, after a major survey showed a growing chasm between town and country.

Fishing: Birth of really big ones

Of the ova laid in the gravel beds of the Te Wairoa and other streams, only about two in every thousand will survive to return as adults three years later.

Call for regulation on dam safety

Campaigners say tougher regulation is needed to ensure dangerous dams are shut down. Unlike most other developed countries, New Zealand has no specific dam safety laws...

Editorial: River of disgrace for farmer group

Federated Farmers should hang its head in shame. Its refusal to sign the Manawatu River accord at a ceremony in Palmerston North this week was a cowardly act that marred what was to be a positive first step towards a healthier river...

Stakeholder plan for Manawatu River enhancement

University researchers working with Horizons Regional Council will combine stakeholder perspectives with current science to help create a management plan to protect and enhance the Manawatu River catchment...

nzfishing.com makes the finals of the NetGuide awards

nzfishing.com has once again made the final three of the 2010 NetGuide awards in the highly competitive Sports and Recreation section. The winner will be announced on August 19th...

New policy framework for managing the region's resources

The policy and strategy committee today recommended the adoption of the proposed Waikato Regional Policy Statement (RPS), a far-reaching planning tool that enables the use of natural resources, such as water and land...

Farmers Snub Clean River Accord

Federated Farmers has opted not to sign a high-profile commitment to clean up the Manawatu River, claiming that not everyone agrees it is in a poor state...

Farmers river move irks Mayor

Manawatu mayor Ian McKelvie is considering cancelling his Federated Farmers membership after the group refused to sign a pledge to clean up the Manawatu River...

Walking Access Commission releases guidelines

Agriculture Minister David Carter launched the New Zealand Walking Access Code for the New Zealand Walking Access Commission at a function in Wellington...

Fed Farmers concerned over wording of river accord

Councils and other groups that have signed an accord to clean up the polluted Manawatu River are angry that Federated Farmers has not yet signed...

Neil Hirtzell nets one more medal

Auckland based fishing guide Neil Hirtzel has returned from his competitive fly-fishing tour of the northern hemisphere with a silver medal...

Fonterra launches programme to tackle effluent issues

Fonterra this week launched a major new initiative designed to bring about a substantial reduction in non-compliance with regional council dairy effluent rules.

Rivers Reach Warning Levels After Heavy Rain

Bay of Plenty Regional Council has issued first warning levels to landowners on the Otara River at Opotiki, the Waimana River and the Waioeka River, all of which are in the eastern Bay of Plenty.

Further farming fines of more than $40,000

Fines totaling $42,000 have been handed down to two Hauraki-based dairy farm owners and a sharemilker in the latest sentencing for dairy effluent offences...

Nominations open for EW candidates

One of the most important ways you can take part in the decisions that shape the Waikato region is to stand for election as a representative on the Waikato Regional Council (Environment Waikato)...

Hurunui-Waiau Water Management Committee considers priorities

The Hurunui-Waiau Zone Committee will consider its work programme and Immediate Steps biodiversity priorities at its first ordinary meeting on Monday. The meeting is open to members of the public...

Hurunui water moratorium announced

Environment Minister Nick Smith has this morning announced his approval for the moratorium on new water takes from Canterbury's fourth largest river that will apply from this Friday, July 23 to October 1 next year...

July 23 2010

Fish farm applications back on the table

Dozens of applications for fish farms which have been frozen since 2001 are to be cleared to proceed under the latest stage of aquaculture law reforms

Irrigation NZ welcomes Hurunui moratorium

Irrigation NZ (INZ) has welcomed the moratorium placed on new major irrigation consents on Canterbury's Hurunui River yesterday, saying it was common sense where no proper water plan exists.

Polluters agree on clean river targets

Leading polluters of the Manawatu River will sign a commitment to reduce pollutants and toxic waste pouring into it but have left some questioning whether the commitment means anything...

Irrigation plans need 'big money' funds boost

Minister of Agriculture David Carter said changes to the Community Irrigation Fund announced on Friday would "fast-track" the development of agricultural irrigation schemes...

Park Rangers series to start on TVNZ

From the endangered Southern Hectors Dolphins of Akaroa to kiwi and kokako conservation on the East Coast, from lost tourists in Able Tasman National Park to trout fishing on Lake Taupo, Park Rangers shows uniquley NZ outdoor stories.

'Good chance of getting sick' if you swim

The Environment Ministry has just published nationwide results of monitoring carried out nationally by councils at swimming spots in rivers, lakes, lagoons and estuaries and found only 57 per cent were safe for swimming most of the time...

Nitrogen trading noticeboard established for Taupo

Environment Waikato has established a new internet-based trading noticeboard for farmers wishing to buy, sell or lease nitrogen under the new Variation 5 policy to protect Lake Taupo...

Canadian takes world rainbow trout record from his twin brother

A new world record for rainbow trout of 21.77kg has been confirmed by the International Game Fish Association.

New Collaborative Approach To Water Management

The formation of the Hurunui-Waiau Zone Committee is an important step towards a more collaborative approach to freshwater management in Canterbury, Environment Minister Nick Smith says.

July 15 2010

Sentencing highlights new penalties for farmers

Operators of two dairy farms within the Lake Rotorua catchment have been sentenced following incidents in 2009 where effluent was illegally discharged.

Name lands NZ fishing rep in hot water with law again

For the second time in as many months, Peter Scott, the New Zealand Fly Fishing champion has fallen foul of the authorities because he shares his name and birthday with a known drug dealer...

Study links runoff to smaller trout

New research appears to confirm what anglers have said for years – that nitrates from farm runoff mean trout in some rivers are smaller than they used to be...

July 9 2010

Weed cordon to protect lake waters

The Bay of Plenty Regional Council has placed a net cordon designed to prevent the spread of aquatic weed around the boat ramp at Matahi Spit on Lake Rotoma.

Canterbury dairy effluent consent compliance rates improve

During the 2009/10 dairy season - which covers the year to the end of May - 59 percent of Canterbury dairy farms were fully compliant with their effluent discharge consent or permitted activity conditions, an improvement from 43 per cent compliance in the previous year...

Divided view on valuing sport fishery

A suggestion a report on the economic value of New Zealand's sport fishery is needed has caused some controversy within Otago Fish and Game.

More didymo research wanted

Fish and Game Otago is to appeal to its national body to support research into the impact of didymo on the Upper Clutha...

Showcase Event Honours 2010 Farm Environment Award Winners

Bay of Plenty farmer John Mackintosh was named winner of the New Zealand Farm Environment Award Trust and MAF Study Scholarship at an event celebrating the 2010 Ballance Farm Environment Awards on June 28

Another growth visible in Lake Rotorua

A dense green algal scum showing up in large amounts along Lake Rotorua’s shoreline should be avoided by people walking dogs or picnicking along the lake shore...

Innovative Water Management Group

A university professor, a director of Horticulture New Zealand, the chair of Hurunui Water, an award winning environmentally friendly farmer, and an employee of Fish and Game are among the seven community appointees to the fledgling Hurunui-Waiau Zone Committee...

Synlait gives water rights to CPW scheme

Dairy company Synlait and Canterbury irrigation company Central Plains Water have buried their differences over water consents from the Rakaia River to clear the way for an irrigation scheme at Te Pirita in central Canterbury...

World Fly Fishing championships about to start

Local band, cheerleaders, held traffic, speeches and parade – little town of Lesko was witnessing today the opening of the 30th Fly Fishing Championships

Trout poached for tangi says Turangi shepherd

A Turangi shepherd convicted of poaching trout from a spawning stream said the fish were for a tangi.

Our rivers of shame

Nearly two years after a national inquiry proposed sweeping changes to help clean up New Zealand's water, pollutants and toxic waste are still pouring into rivers.

Taupo trout poaching accused linked to tragedy

A Turangi man who allegedly caught 17 trout using a net is connected to a family tragedy involving fish poaching.

$47,000 in fines for North Waikato effluent offending

A North Waikato dairying operation and its manager have been fined a total of almost $50,000 after admitting unlawful spilling of effluent from a holding pond on to land...

'Terrible smash' coming quickly

The ongoing debate about how to best manage the Manawatu River is a microcosm of the impending catastrophe and a perfect case study in the delicate balancing act regulators are forced to undertake...

Passport snag catches fisherman

One of New Zealand's top fly fishermen was stopped from boarding a plane to the World Championships in Poland, because police thought he was a drug dealer...

Didymo Confirmed in Remote Chilean Rivers

The presence of the invasive didymo, has been confirmed in remote Chilean rivers near Esquel, Argentina, by a U.S. Geological Survey scientist...

Fisherman waits 11 years for fish to be mounted

An angler has to wait 11 years to get the trophy fish he caught to be returned from the taxidermist. (This is a video clip and you need click on chapter 2)

Community Service For Trout Poachers

In Taupo District Court Judge Chris McGuire sentenced seven Turangi men who had earlier pleaded guilty to gill-netting a total of 49 trout from the Waimarino Stream, near Turangi...

Wetox turns rivers of sludge into revenue streams

Wetox has the potential to keep New Zealand's rivers and waterways clean by treating the run-off from our dairy farms, wineries and meat works.

Central Plains Water Decision Released

The hearing panel appointed by Environment Canterbury and the Selwyn District Council have released their decision on the resource consents and Notice of Requirement for Central Plains Water Trust and Central Plains Water Limited.

Rise Fly Fishing Film festival dates announced

RISE - Fly Fishing Film Festival 2010, the world's largest fishing film festival, hits theatres on the New Zealand leg of its 2010 worldwide tour throughout July...

Writer blasts powers over Manawatu river's state

The polluted Manawatu River has a history of being neglected by those in power, writes a local researcher in a book to be sold nationally...

Invasive Algae Species Discovered In Chile’s Patagonia Region

Didymosphenia, commonly known as “Didymo,” “Rock Snot” or “The Toliet Paper Weed,” has been discovered in New Zealand and North America and is now confirmed to have made its way into the Futaleufu River, in Chile’s Patagonia Region...

Silver Flies about to leave for championships

The NZ team for the worlds is leaving on Friday 4th June to Poland for the 30th World Fly Fishing Cahmionships...

Help to distribute flyers for important water advocacy event

Helpers are needed to distribute 250,000 flyers to advertise the event to Canterbury households. The flyers can be picked up between 8:30am and 5pm on Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th of May at 311 Montreal Street

Auckland’s water allocation to be controlled

North Shore City Council Committee Chair Grant Gillon says that there is a suggestion that a Wellington-based body will be set up to control the allocation and management of freshwater throughout New Zealand.

Mokihinui an environmental winner

The debate on the Mokihinui hydro scheme on the West Coast has wide- ranging implications. The arguments against the scheme centre on the fact that it will change the environment...

First salmon smolt release in four years

Members of the Dunedin Community Salmon Trust, Salmon Anglers Association, Fish and Game and trust support group the Hens, Jacks and Sprats Club spent the morning transferring 10,000 locally reared smolt from the hatchery, to the Water of Leith and Careys Bay...

New era for Environment Canterbury

After a powhiri and morning tea, the first meeting of the Canterbury Regional Council Commissioners, as it is being called, began...

Waimakariri seeks water management committee

People with an interest in water management in the Waimakariri district are being urged to put their names forward, or nominate someone else, for the Waimakariri Water Management Zone Committee which will be formed in July...

Lower Waitaki consents - hearing decisions

The latest consent hearing decisions for the Lower Waitaki River are now online on the Environment Canterbury website...

Rocksnot spreads in Tasman region

A survey of 40 waterways found didymo in the Riwaka and Pearse rivers and it was confirmed to be in the Maruia River from a sample collected by a member of the public....

Irrigation benefits in Wairarapa scoped

The same week as the Irrigation NZ conference in Christchurch, Rural News obtained a report looking at the economic benefits of irrigation in Wairarapa...

First public meeting of Environment Canterbury Commissioners

At their first public meeting today, Environment Canterbury's new council, led by chairwoman Dame Margaret Bazley, and deputy chair David Caygill, opened with a powhiri...

Water dispute boils over

An angry protest greeted Environment Minister Nick Smith in Christchurch last night before he announced that up to 11,000 big users of water will be forced to use meters...

Meeting of Environment Canterbury commissioners

The Commissioners for Environment Canterbury take over the governance role on May 1 2010 and their first public meeting as Commissioners will take place on Wednesday May 5, at 10 am, Council Chamber, 58 Kilmore St, Christchurch.

Dunne: DoC to be applauded for Mokihinui appeal

UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne has applauded the Department of Conservation for its ‘courageous’ appeal of the decision to grant resource consent for the Mokihinui Hydro Dam.

DOC to appeal Mokihinui decision

The Department of Conservation has today lodged papers with the Environment Court appealing the decision to grant resource consent for the Mokihinui Hydro Proposal on the West Coast.

Ten-year study of environment draws to close

A world-leading Motueka environmental management project is winding down this week, but the lessons it has taught about understanding the connections between land, river, sea and people are likely to be lasting...

Meridian wins consent to take water from Waitaki

State-owned electricity generator Meridian Energy says it has been given water-only resource consents for a $900 million hydro development in the Waimate district...

Forest & Bird to appeal Mokihinui dam

Independent conservation organisation Forest & Bird has lodged an appeal against the massive dam Meridian Energy wants to build on the pristine Mokihinui River.

Dam it: West Coasters resigned to losing river

In 2008, when Karamea tramper and conservationist Margaret Rich heard about Meridian Energy's proposal to build a dam on the Mokihinui River, she went to the site, stood in the tumbling water and gazed up, trying to visualise a dam the height of a 20-storey building looming above the wild river...

Govt backs new reports on state of environment

Legislation to ensure regular, independent environmental monitoring might be introduced to Parliament before the next election, the Government says...

Manawatu not world's dirtiest river

Horizons Regional Council has moved to "dispel myths" that the Manawatu River is the most polluted in the Western world. But a freshwater ecologist concedes it is the most unhealthy river in the country...

River a convenient drain for effluent

On hearing that Manawatu River was one of the most polluted waterways in the West, I was appalled. I totally agree with UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne when he says that for "too long fertiliser runoff and effluent discharges had gone unpunished and urgent action was needed", and that he supports "imposing tough limits on fertiliser use and waste discharge as self-regulation was not strong enough for many polluters".

Waikato-Tainui and EW share vision of a clean and healthy river

Waikato-Tainui and Environment Waikato came together around the council’s policy-making table yesterday to start discussions about how to achieve the shared vision of a clean and healthy Waikato River.

Hornwort Confirmed In Lake Okataina

Environment Bay of Plenty has confirmed that infestations of the aquatic pest plant Hornwort have been found in two bays at the south-western end of Lake Okataina. Delimitation work to assess the full extent of the incursion will be carried out from next week.

Backdown on water rules for Manawatu

Horizons Regional Council has backed down on its push for strict environmental regulation of farmers as a way to clean up Manawatu's waterways...

ECan records opposition to removal of democracy legislation

Council records its strong opposition to Act which has removed regional democracy in Canterbury and recommends handing Canterbury Water Management Strategy funding back to local territorial councils...

Lake Rotoehu Health Warning Lifted

The health warning in place for Lake Rotoehu since the end of 2009 has been lifted. Medical Officer of Health, Dr Phil Shoemack, says that “results of regular water testing performed by Environment Bay of Plenty confirm that the algal bloom has disappeared.

Plenty of local traditions you can get your teeth into

[from May Contain Facts by Steve Braunias]

...Our latest examination of current events leads us to nominate Taupo man Raniera Morehu as newsmaker of the week...

Morehu said local iwi should be able to take fish as a right...he. had taken the trout for a tangi, and... believed it was his customary right as a kaumatua to gather trout for food. "He broke Pakeha law to uphold his own law," she said...

May Contain Facts contacted prominent Maori consultant Local Iwi for comment...

Maori leader wants to take trout "as a right"

A prominent Maori leader caught netting trout at Lake Taupo says local iwi should be able take fish as a right...

Poacher Claims Maori 'Right' To Take Taupo Trout

A Maori leader caught poaching trout from Lake Taupo says local iwi should be given customary rights to take fish...

Westport cycle trail clears hurdle

A proposed 60-km track behind the hills north of Westport is one of 13 to clear the first hurdle in the New Zealand Cycle Trail Project and will enable anglers reach some great backcountry fishing...

Dunne joins dam critics

United Future leader Peter Dunne may join an appeal against resource consent for a West Coast hydro project. Meridian Energy's Mokihinui hydro project was granted consent on Tuesday...

EW chairman pledges council support after drought declaration

Environment Waikato chairman Peter Buckley says the regional council will work closely with the Government and other agencies to help support farmers through drought conditions in the region...

Mayor backs $300m hydro dam plan

Buller Mayor Pat McManus says he wishes people would focus on the positive environmental impacts of an 80m-high hydro dam to be built on the Mokihinui River, north of Westport, rather than criticising the plan...

7 April 2010

Forest and Bird MacKenzie Gathering 24-25 April 2010

Forest and Bird will be hosting a weekend for everyone interested in protecting the Mackenzie Basin from intensive dairying and development...

Dunne: Mokihinui Dam decision narrow-minded

UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne has described the decision to grant resource consent for an 85 metre high hydro dam on the Mokihinui River as “narrow-minded and backward”...

Mokihinui dam gets go-ahead

Commissioners have decided two to one to grant resource consent for a controversial hydro dam on the West Coast...

'Cake in one hand; blood-covered knife in other'

Canterbury council chief executives left Environment Canterbury (ECan) meetings "with a cream cake in one hand and a blood-covered knife in the other", ousted ECan deputy chairwoman Jo Kane says...

Why we might give a dam

Could there really be a way to bring badly needed irrigation water to the Waimea Plains and keep everybody else happy in the process? GEOFF COLLETT looks at the ambitious plan to dam a river to save a river...

The wealth lying in our waterways

Nelson MP Nick Smith's analogy of New Zealand water to Saudi oil is apt in various ways – not least for the potential wealth it speaks of that lies in the billions and billions of litres flowing down rivers such as the Waimea each year...

Native American people visit salmon with cultural links

Fish & Game recently escorted 27 members of the Native American tribe, the Winnemem Wintu, to the headwaters of the Rakaia River. The tribe, who came to New Zealand to investigate taking salmon back to restock their river, wanted to see the wild salmon spawning...

Environment Waikato backs Fonterra farm checks

Fonterra’s pilot programme to check the effluent management infrastructure on farms in the Waikato is well underway and receiving positive support and feedback from farmers and Environment Waikato, says Fonterra’s GM Milk Supply, Tim Deane...

Committee approval key milestone in Canterbury Water Management Strategy

The Hurunui-Waiau Zone Water Management Committee has been formally approved for establishment, and its Terms of Reference endorsed, by the Environment Canterbury Council...

Grave concerns about sweeping changes to WCO legislation

Grave concerns about the sweeping changes to Water Conservation Order (WCO) legislation, specific to Canterbury are expressed in a letter from a group of organisation incluifn Fisg & Game. Read the letter...

Summer water quality monitoring programme ends in Southland

Environment Southland has finished its weekly bathing water quality monitoring programme for the summer. Coastal Scientist Greg Larkin said that the results had generally been good all around the coast and for all the lakes and rivers during the long period of settled weather during February...

Prosecution withdrawn for dairy shed effluent discharge

Environment Canterbury has withdrawn prosecution in favour of environmental mitigation relating to unlawful dairy shed effluent discharges by two Ashburton farming companies...

Environment Canterbury will work constructively with commissioners

The Chairman of Environment Canterbury, Alec Neill, says that Environment Canterbury will work constructively with commissioners following today’s government announcement that the council’s elected representatives will be replaced by commissioners from the expected date of May 1, 2010...

Report shows health of Kaimai catchments

Environment Bay of Plenty, Environment Waikato, and the Department of Conservation, have released a state of the environment report on the health of the Kaimai and Mamaku Ranges and Waihou and Tauranga Harbour catchments...

Environment Canterbury Draft Annual Plan submissions called for

Canterbury people are invited to have their say in helping Environment Canterbury set its priorities for the year. The Draft Annual Plan 2010/11 is now available and public submissions on the plan can be made until April 30...

Kereru-shooting video sparks outrage

Five Norwegian men who shot New Zealand wildlife were today ducking for cover as a row continued over their YouTube video of protected kereru being slaughtered...

Row over shot kereru goes global

Five Norwegian men who shot New Zealand wildlife are ducking for cover as a row continues over their YouTube video of protected kereru being slaughtered...

Proposed Waipara Plan adopted for submissions

he Proposed Waipara River Catchment Environmental Flow and Allocation Regional Plan has been adopted for notification by Environment Canterbury and will be available for public submissions from Saturday April 17...

Mid Canterbury farmer fined for unauthorised water take

A Mayfield farmer, Simon Roy, has been fined $7500 after pleading guilty to a charge of taking water for irrigation without the necessary resource consent...

Duck-shooting ban reversed

A Maori trust has reversed its decision to ban hunters from duck shooting at two Wellington lakes after meeting Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson..

Native Americans in spiritual salmon mission to NZ

Two dozen Native Americans have come to New Zealand on a spiritual mission to ask their fish to return home to California...

Waterways - Privatisation by stealth

Access to lakes, rivers and bays is something kiwis take for granted. But many of our waterways are off limits to the public. Property titles can cut across riverbeds, creating a web of no-go zones in our best fishing spots...View video footage

Leo search continues

The continuing search for missing Nelson teenager Leo Lipp-Neighbours has produced no new leads despite Search and Rescue recently scouring the Whangamoa area including the lower Whangamoa Creek.

"The search is still very much alive," said Tasman police district assistant SAR co-ordinator Sherp Tucker... "If anyone has any thoughts or evidence then we really want to hear it." ...

Forestry company hit with record fine

Forestry management company PF Olsen has been hit with one of the largest fines imposed for environmental pollution after debris collapsed into streams in the eastern Bay of Plenty.

The company was fined $80,000 in Tauranga District Court this week....Large amounts of sediment and forestry rubbish slid down ridges and into valleys and streams following three days of heavy rain at Waiotahi forest near Opotiki in April 2008...

Regional Council Responds To Creech Review: Need For Change Acknowledged

Environment Canterbury has released its response to the recent Government investigation of its functions under the Resource Management and Local Government Acts...

What’s on the Horizon after the Clean Streams Accord?

“The Dairying and Clean Streams Accord has done its job of raising awareness of adverse environmental effects among dairy farmers, and the recent Snapshot of Progress clearly shows progress on the ground has stalled,” said Bryce Johnson, Chief Executive...

Hunters support MP’s call for Pencarrow duck-shooting review

Fish & Game supports United Future leader Peter Dunne’s call for a thorough review of any potential environmental impacts of duck hunting on Pencarrow Lakes...

Public Rights to Lakes Stopped By Wellington Iwi

Public use rights to the local Pencarrow lakes have been stopped by the Wellington Iwi organisation, the Port Nicholson Block Settlement Trust. Duck hunting has been occurring on the lake for over 80 years...

Clean Streams Accord is Past Its Use-by Date

“The Dairying and Clean Streams Accord Snapshot of Progress 2008/09 released today paints a grim picture of ‘progress’ and clearly indicates that the Accord is past its use-by date.” said Neil Deans, Resource Management Coordinator, New Zealand Fish & Game Council...

Resource consent non-compliance an ongoing issue

Environment Canterbury is actively working with dairy industry partners to improve the management of dairy effluent on Canterbury farms, as highlighted in the Dairying and Clean Streams Accord Snapshot of Progress report for 2008/09...

Minister takes dairy farmers to task on pollution

Agriculture Minister David Carter is putting dairy farmers who pollute on notice following the release today of the Dairying and Clean Streams Accord 2008/09 snapshot report...

Dairy accord report highlights need for improvement

The latest snapshot of Waikato dairy farmer compliance with regional council effluent management rules shows the importance of the council working with farmers to improve the situation, says Environment Waikato...

Private exploitation of a public resource

The NZ Federation of Freshwater Anglers congratulates Doug Stevens for highlighting ('Morning Report') a growing problem about which we have expressed concern for some years, namely 'fishing access being sold for pecuniary gain'...

Federation of Freshwater Anglers

Anglers say access to fishing spots is declining

Anglers say traditional easy access to rivers, lakes and streams is being made harder by landowners selling exclusive access rights to guiding companies... Listen to the news item

Canterbury sharemilker fined for effluent discharge

An Ashburton sharemilker, Richard Neil Spicer, has been fined a total of $12,000 after pleading guilty to two charges, discharging effluent from an irrigator onto land causing ponding (which may have resulted in contaminants entering groundwater) and contravening an abatement notice...

Research and Monitoring Charge Proposed for Water

Environment Southland proposes to introduce a new annual charge onto resource consents for taking water, which will reduce the amount that the general ratepayer pays towards scientific investigations and monitoring the use of the region’s aquifers and waterways...

In trout-fishing heaven

Crystal-clear mountain streams and trophy-size brown and rainbow trout. SEET CHER HUNG from Singapore gushes about the trout fishing experience in New Zealand ...

Groundwater levels below average in Canterbury

Canterbury groundwater levels fell in February as a result of settled weather combined with average-to-dry conditions, according to monitoring by Environment Canterbury scientists...

Wheelchair access idea for Waimakiriri

Sponsors are needed for a wheelchair friendly platform on the northern bank of the Waimakariri River...

Environment Canterbury Council adopts, for consultation, funding of the Canterbury Water Management Strategy

The Environment Canterbury Council has voted 12-2 to adopt an amendment, for consultation, to its Annual Plan to provide $3.3M in funding for the Canterbury Water Management Strategy for the 2010/11 year...

Poaching problems on Taranaki and Ruapehu rivers

Reports received indicate that a number of foreign tourists, possibly of Polish or Czech nationality, have been sighted over harvesting trout in the Waimarino and Ruapehu areas...

Call for help at proposed One Plan hearings

Fish & Game is calling for as many people as possible to turn up to the proposed One Plan hearings in Palmerston North on the 3rd and 4th March 2010 to support Fish and Game, Forest and Bird and the Department of Conservation, while they present evidence to the commissioners on the state of our freshwaters and their ecosystems, the factors that threaten them, and the need to protect them...

Who would win fly fishing Olympic gold?

As much as I'm enjoying watching the Winter Olympics, I must admit that I think "bonus curling coverage" is an oxymoron. That's not a sport. That's a game. Anything you can do while you drink beer should not qualify as an Olympic sport. But if the Olympics want curling in the mix, why not fly fishing?

I wonder who would win medals in the various fly fishing disciplines...Sight fishing? New Zealand 1, Slovenia 2, and USA 3...

Zone and regional water management committees get the green light

The Mayoral Forum, at its meeting yesterday, gave a green light for the introduction of zone and regional water management committees proposed by the Canterbury Water Management Strategy...

Drift dives show Hurunui South Branch is ‘trophy’ fishery

Fish & Game carried out drift dives in the Hurunui catchment last week as part of a regular monitoring programme to record to the size and abundance of trout in the rivers. The information will be used to reinforce their argument for protecting the South and North branches of the Hurunui River in a Water Conservation Order. Fish & Game Officer Tony Hawker said the number of large fish in the South Branch show it supports a ‘trophy’ fishery. Fish & Game are appealing the decision by the Special Tribunal to omit the South Branch from the Water Conservation Order because they think the river is ‘outstanding’ and warranting protection.

Upper Waitaki resource consent applications being heard

A hearing to hear and decide applications in the Upper Waitaki catchment is currently being heard by a Hearing Panel in Christchurch. The hearing is scheduled to be completed by the end of March 2010...

[Minutes and correspondence are also available on the ECan website]

Environment Canterbury faces the axe

The future of Environment Canterbury (ECan) hangs in the balance as the Government considers axing the council and replacing it with a commission... following a damning report on its performance.

The Government is considering taking the unprecedented step... until governance and management issues around the allocation of water rights in Canterbury are sorted out. But Labour and the Greens are already gearing up to fight the move...

DOC to provide comforts for a fee

Luxury meals, hot showers and comfortable beds could all be provided by businesses in our national parks under new commercial plans to open them up to more private companies.

The Conservation Department, which had $13.5 million shaved off its budget this year, is also considering charging for services such as the use of toilets and car parks...

Council optimistic about river partnership with Waikato-Tainui

Environment Waikato is looking forward to working with Waikato-Tainui and other iwi to achieve the shared vision of a clean and healthy Waikato River.

That vision is set out in the agreement between the Crown and Waikato-Tainui over management of the Waikato River between Karapiro and Te Puaha o Waikato (Port Waikato)...

Old Motu Coach Trail one of 13 new cycle routes planned

A joint proposal to have the old Motu Coach Trail developed as a part of the New Zealand Cycle Trail project has been approved for feasibility studies...opportunities for other adventure activities before, during and after the trail include outstanding bush walks, trout fishing, and white water rafting..[See Motu River]

[See also Lucky thirteen new cycle trails planned]

Didymo hits the Waimakariri

Biosecurity measures have been tightened for this weekend's Coast to Coast event after didymo was found in the Waimakariri River for the first time...

Funding sought for strategic water study on the Mataura River

Environment Southland will seek government funding for a strategic study into water demand in the Mataura catchment...

Council to implement state of the environment water charging

A new model for funding environmental investigations and monitoring water was adopted for consultation at today’s Environment Canterbury council meeting...

Lucky thirteen new cycle trails planned

Thirteen cycle trails got the nod today to go through to feasibility studies for inclusion in Nga Haerenga, The New Zealand Cycle Trail project. They are:

1. Tauranga Moana Coastal Cycle Trail (Tauranga)
2. Old Motu Coach Road (Opotiki/Gisborne)
3. Thermal by Bike (Rotorua)
4. Lake Track (Taupo)
5. Mountains to Sea Cycleway – link (Ruapehu)
6. Heretaunga Ararua: Land of a Hundred Pathways (Hawkes Bay)
7. Dun Mountain and Tasman Cycle Loop (Nelson/Tasman)
8. Old Ghost Road (West Coast)
9. Westland Wilderness Trail (Greymouth)
10. Alps to Ocean Cycle Trail (Mt Cook)
11. The Wakatipu Trail (Queenstown)
12. Roxburgh Gorge Trail (Central Otago)
13. Clutha Gold Trail (Otago)

River warnings for toxic algae

Despite cooler temperatures and higher river flows in most of the region many of Canterbury’s hill-fed rivers remain prone to developing potentially toxic algae, reports Environment Canterbury...

Hillside fine appropriate says EW

Environment Waikato says the $65,000 fine imposed today on the Crafar company Hillside Ltd is appropriate for the offending involved...

Smelly river prompts cleanup call

A call from Greens co-leader Russel Norman for improved protection of the region's waterways, after kayaking on a river smelling of cow faeces, has gained traction with councils and Federated Farmers...

Great educational day out at Lake Wainono

Last Saturday the combined efforts of Environment Canterbury, Fish and Game, Department of Conservation, Canterbury Biodiversity and local people provided an excellent appraisal of the wetland we know as Lake Wainono...

EW welcomes flow-on effect of carbon deal for Lake Taupo

A pioneering deal involving a farm-to-forestry conversion and the subsequent sale of carbon credits from the forests is being heralded as a major win for the Waikato economy and the environment...

EW hears community views on 1080

Environment Waikato is to encourage the use of a new 'low-sow' method of applying 1080 that cuts the amount of toxin used to control possums. The move is part of the regional council’s quest to find effective and affordable alternatives to aerially-applied 1080...

Freedom campers 'don't care'

Tourism operators in the Southern Lakes district are demanding tougher camping controls to stop freedom campers destroying scenic sites in the region...

A meeting will be held next month to discuss the two areas will be run by LINZ and have members from the association, the Queenstown Lakes District Council and the Department of Conservation...

Chopper looking for teen

The family of missing teen Leo Lipp-Neighbours have hired a helicopter to search for him and are scouring roads for any sign of his car.

... Acting Detective Senior Sergeant Ian Langridge, of Nelson, said Mr Lipp-Neighbours' family was extremely worried he might have lost control while travelling on a remote road..he was known to enjoy driving to remote spots and then take short walks to enjoy the views.

Police and Mr Lipp-Neighbours' family are asking people to look out for his car and report or investigate any tyre marks or other indication a car may have left the road in an uncontrolled manner.

[Anglers are asked to keep an eye out for Leo and his orange 1987 Toyota Corolla station wagon registration NQ 7258 in areas in Nelson and upper South Island areas]

View photos

Dazzling array of classes on offer at art school

A pot-pourri of classes is on offer at this year's Wanaka Autumn Art School, with instruction on everything from photography and cooking to fly fishing and painting available on the five-day programme being held on April 12-16...

Meanwhile, people have until Sunday to apply for Upper Clutha Community Arts Council grants to attend the school.

Programmes, registration forms and grant application forms are available at the Wanaka Public Library in Dunmore St and at www.autumnartschool.net.nz.

[Read about Lake Wanaka fly fishing]

Push for commercial trout farming continues

Pressure is growing on the government to lift a ban on commercial trout farming.

Federated Farmers says trout farming has the potential to be a huge export earner and is calling for the the Conservation Act to be reviewed...

Fish and Game spokesman Ric Cullinane, says not only disease, but poaching would also endanger the wild trout population and New Zealand's image...

The Government has said it intends to keep the status quo, though a Parliamentary select committee will review acquaculture legislation later this year.

Missing man sighted?

Police are following up a reported sighting of missing Nelson teenager Leo Lipp-Neighbours in Christchurch, but still have concerns for his safety...

View photos...

Wind farm opponents may challenge court's decision

Opponents of a $400 million wind farm planned for the central North Island may appeal against an Environment Court decision allowing the project to go ahead. The court approved Meridian Energy's 130-megawatt Central Wind project between Taihape and Waiouru...

Rangitikei Guardians opposed the project because of the visual effect the 135-metre-high turbines would have on a natural landscape...

Dirty River rafting no pleasure trip

Green Party co-leader Russel Norman agrees his latest venture, The Dirty Rivers Rafting Tour, sounds like something rock band AC/DC would embark on. In reality it involves Dr Norman and supporters paddling down New Zealand rivers to draw attention to their poor water quality and ask the Government to clean them up...

DOC criticised for permitting eel catch

The Green Party is "appalled" fishermen have been granted concessions allowing them to catch rare eels on the West Coast. The Department of Conservation (DOC) has granted three five-year concessions giving commercial fishermen access to catch the eels in the region's lakes and rivers...

The Press

Polluting a stream costs more than $13,000

Two firms have been slapped with more than $13,000 in fines after allowing sediment to flow into a stream while they built a passing lane near Te Kuiti last year....

Farmer fined $23,000 for polluting river

A Golden Bay farmer has been fined $23,000 for discharging effluent into the Onahau River. In the Environment Court in Nelson yesterday, Judge Brian Dwyer said 74-year-old Patricia Nancy Riley had a history of "extremely poor compliance"....

Catching up with Australia: Philip York

The European harvest of farmed trout is 203000 tonnes annually - half of our lamb exports. Yet New Zealand is about the only country on earth to ban trout ...

Trout farming back on table

Christchurch consultant Norman Moe has been involved in trout farming in Chile for decades and would set up a New Zealand farm tomorrow if he could...

Mice theory for fat fish gains traction

Two Australian tourists have landed two monster brown trout within a stone's throw of one another as speculation about the "year of the mouse" hots up in the Nelson Marlborough Fish and Game district...

Setting up a salmon hatchery on the Waitaki River

On the 26th January at 7,30pm, in the Glenavy Hall, Gleavy, local salmon anglers are holding a public meeting to gauge local interest and to consider the feasibility of establishing a small salmon rearing complex on the Waitaki River.

Trout farms risky - Fish & Game

Fish and Game has dismissed suggestions that trout be commercially raised, saying the possible risk from disease and impact on those on fishing the species for fun is too great.

Trout farm idea opposed due to risks

Any benefits from allowing commercial trout farming would be "heavily outweighed" by the risks to New Zealand's wild trout fishery, Otago Fish and Game chief executive, Niall Watson, says.

Trout farming ban should be lifted, says Fed Farmers

Listen to the news item on National Radio where Federated Farmers discuss their resonoing behind their call to lift the ban on trout farming in New Zealand.

Aquaculture To Grow The Economy

Federated Farmers believes aquaculture, along with minerals and the agricultural sector, provides three pillars for the transformation of the New Zealand economy...

Call to restart trout farming

Federated Farmers wants the prohibition on commercial farming of trout to be lifted. President Don Nicolson believes there is considerable scope for land based and freshwater aquaculture, including the farming of whitebait, fresh water mussels, eels as well as freshwater crayfish.

Tasty art on show

[review of Taste, Food and Feasting in Art at Auckland Art Gallery]

Food has been at the centre of art since the beginning. The first images created by artists were of the beasts he hunted for food...

Peter Peryer’s... image “Trout Lake Taupo” is an image which conjures up various notions about our relationship with food and hunting...

EW helping in aftermath of Awakino spill

Environment Waikato is to assist emergency services in dealing with a diesel and whey spill after a truck crash into the Awakino River, near the south-west corner of the regional council’s area, this morning...

Council committed to keeping didymo out of the Gisborne region

The Gisborne District is free from didymo (didymospenia geminate) and we need to keep it that way,” says Didymo Awareness Advocate Charlotte Tietjen. The invasive algae - commonly known as “rock snot” – have devastated many South Island rivers...

Crafar company pleads guilty to effluent charges

A Crafar dairying company Hillside Ltd has today pleaded guilty to four charges of unlawfully discharging effluent to land between November 2007 and February 2008 on the company’s property situated at Kuratau, situated south west of Lake Taupo...

EW outlines Variation 5 consent charges

Environment Waikato is announcing details of the indicative charges farmers will face for new consents in the Lake Taupo catchment...

Stonefly Lodge opens on the Motueka River

New Zealand's latest lodge Stonefly Lodge has opened for business. The lodge is designed specifically for anglers and is on the banks of the Motueka River and close to a number of other top fishing waters...