The Pegasus Bay rig fishery : management for optimum yield

Abstract

The Pegasus Bay rig fishery is a small but complex set net fishery. It is one of the four main, fisheries exploiting the South Island east coast rig stock. The goal of this study is to determine how the fishery could be managed for optimum yield.

The fishery is shown to be in a very serious biological state. Rig abundance is declining rapidly as a result of severe overfishing. At present, the trawl by-catch alone exceeds the estimated sustainable yield. It seems likely, however, that other species in the area can be exploited by set net fishermen without being overfished. The fishery is also in a serious economic condition. Economic and financial returns from the fishery are both very low. Further set net fishing on the scale presently practiced can be expected to generate significant economic losses in the near future.

Five key elements of the optimum yield are recognised for this fishery: biological sustainability, economic efficiency, the provision of reasonable incomes for fishermen, the complexity of management regulations, and the cost of managing the fishery. It is concluded that two steps are necessary to attain the optimum yield. The first is a reduction in the number of vessels in the fishery. The second is a redistribution of fishing effort off rig and on to other species. Various management measures for achieving these two requirements are outlined.