ame NEW ZEALAND 1 August 2016 Southland Regional Council PO Box 90116 Invercargill 9810 Attention: Anita Dawe - Policy & Planning Manager Dear Anita SUBMISSION ON SOUTHLAND REGIONAL COUNCILS PROPOSED WATER AND LAND PLAN FOR THE SOUTHLAND REGION Please find enclosed the submission by Fish & Game in respect of the proposed Southland Water and Land Plan 2016. Fish & Game would be happy to sit down and discuss its submission in further details if this would be beneficial. Yours sincerely Jacob Smyth Resource Management Officer Fish & Game - Southland Region Statutory managers of freshwater sports fish, game birds and their habitats llll^ - - - - - III r III - lllll^ - - - - - - SUBMISSION ON SOUTHLAND REGIONAL COUNCILS PROPOSED WATER AND LAND PLAN FOR THE SOUTHLAND REGION Prepared under the Resource Management Act 1991 To: Southland Regional Council ('Council') PO Box 90116 Invercargill 9810 Attention : Anita Dawe - Policy & Planning Manager Name of stakeholder : Southland Fish & Game Council ('Fish & Game') Postal address : PO Box 159, Invercargill 9840 Phone : 032159117 Fax: 032159118 Contact person : Jacob Smyth - Resource Management Officer E-mail: [email protected] Phone: 03 215 9117 (work) / 021 280 0755 (mobile) This submission is made in reference to the proposed Southland Water and Land Plan (pWLP) and accompanying report prepared under s 32 of the Resource Management Act (the s 32 report). Trade Competition Pursuant to Clause 6 of Schedule 1 of the Resource Management Act 1991 (the RMA), Fish & Game confirm that it could not gain an advantage in trade competition through this submission. Hearing 1 Fish & Game wish to be heard in support of its submission; and would be prepared to consider presenting a joint case at any hearing with others presenting a similar submission. Signature: Jacob Smyth - Resource Management Officer Date: Monday, 1 August 2016 Preliminary Fish & Game's submission is structured as follows: 1. Introduction - Role of Fish & Game and statutory mandate; 2. Background - the importance of the sports fishery and game bird resource in the Southland Region, which should be recognised and provided for in the pWLP; 3. General submission on the draft pWLP and relief sought; 4. Specific submissions on the draft pWLP and relief sought; and 5. Appendices. 2 INTRODUCTION Role of Fish & Game and statutory mandate 1. Southland Fish and Game Council is the statutory manager of sports fish and game birds within Southland Fish and Game Region under Parts 5A and 5B of the Conservation Act 1987 and Part II of the Wildlife Act 1953 and their associated regulations and notices. The Southland Fish and Game Council is comprised of 12 members elected from licence holders in the Southland Fish and Game Region. 2. Fish and Game Councils are statutory bodies with functions, pursuant to s 26Q of the Conservation Act 1987, to (inter alia): "Functions of Fish and Game Councils ... to manage, maintain and enhance the sports fish and game bird resources in the recreational interests of anglers and hunters, and, in particular - (b) To maintain and improve the sports fish and game resource- 1. By maintaining and improving access ... (c) To promote and educate- 2. By promoting recreation based on sports fish and game (e) In relation to planning- 1. To represent the interests and aspirations of anglers and hunters in the statutory planning process; and (vi) To advocate the interests of the Council, including its interests in habitats ... 3 3. In addition, s 7(h) of the Resource Management Act 1991 ('the RMA') provides that persons "shall have particular regard to ... the protection of the habitat of trout and salmon." 4. Sports fishery management sits within a framework established for freshwater fishery management and similarly game bird management within a framework of wildlife management jointly between Fish and Game Councils and the Department of Conservation (DoC) in Part VB of the Conservation Act 1987. Aspects of fishery and game bird management (such as which species should be managed where) are covered by that legislation. Thus species management is primarily the function of DoC and Fish and Game Councils. The nature of this management is set out in some detail for each Fish and Game region in their respective statutory Sports Fish and Game Management Plans which have been through a public process and approved by the Minister of Conservation. As statutory management plans, this regional plan and other such plans prepared under the RMA are obliged to `have regard to' such plans in their preparation (section 66(2)(c)(i)). Fish and Game submits that this plan does not adequately have regard for these plans, which is covered in more detail elsewhere in this submission. BACKGROUND The importance of sports fishery and game bird resources in the Southland region 5. The sports fish and game bird resources of the Southland region are highly valued. Fish & Game represents holders of 15,500 angling and hunting licences in the region (2016 game - 5,714 licences and 2015 / 2016 fish - 10,126 licences). Sports fishery 6. The Southland sports fishery is particularly significant, with 153,710 ± 6,190 angler days being spent on waters within the Southland Region during the 2007 / 2008 angling season (Unwin (2009)). 7. The Southland region is one of the key regions in the South Island for sport fishing and includes a large number of sports fisheries which have locally, regionally and nationally significant values. 8. The value of the sports fish resource in the Southland region is encapsulated by the two operative Water Conservation Orders in the Region, Water Conservation (Mataura River) Order 1997 and Water Conservation (Oreti River) Order 2008, which recognise nationally significant brown trout fisheries / habitat and angling amenity features associated with the Mataura and Oreti Rivers. Excluding fisheries wholly or partly dependent on sea-run Chinook salmon, the Mataura and Oreti Rivers are the two most heavily fished trout rivers in the Southland Island and New Zealand if the Tongariro River, which is manged by the Department of Conservation and lies within the Taupo Conservancy, is excluded. In short, the Mataura and Oreti Rivers have national and international status. 4 9. International anglers are a significant presence on rivers in the Southland region. The 2007 / 2008 National Angling Survey provides that the Southland Region was the most popular region for overseas anglers during the 2007 / 2008 fishing season, accounting for 25.3% of total overseas angling effort in Southland. 10. Southland has an enviable selection of waterbodies that offer regionally significant fishing opportunities, for example: Lakes Manapouri and Te Anau, Waituna Lagoon and the Upper and Lower Waiau and Aparima Rivers. In addition, Southland has many locally significant fisheries, such as the Makarewa River, which provide close to home angler opportunity, and a comprehensive network of significant spawning rivers and streams, such as the Waikaka Stream and tributaries, which are essential to the health and sustainability of the regions fisheries. 11. All river and still water fisheries in Southland are wild and self-sustaining through natural spawning, rearing and recruitment of juvenile trout into the adult population. It is the standing of adult trout that provide the recreational trout fishing amenity and fishery productivity is related to habitat quality and ecosystem health. 12. Sports fisheries have existed as part of a statutory regime in New Zealand since 1867, with the largely salmonid (trout and salmon) based fisheries a key value in and attribute of our freshwaters. Sports fish are recognised and defined in the Conservation Act. The current statutory basis and regime for sports fishery management by Fish and Game Councils is provided for under Part 5A of the Conservation Act, as part of freshwater fisheries management, together with associated Freshwater Fisheries Regulations 1983 and annual Angler's Notices promulgated under this legislation. Game bird resource 13. The Southland Region provides for significant wildlife habitat and game bird hunting opportunities, with key wetlands such as the Waituna / Awarua complex, numerous other wetlands on private and public land and its extensive network of rivers and lakes. 14. Game birds are recognised and defined in the First Schedule of the Wildlife Act 1953. The current statutory basis and regime for game bird management by Fish and Game Councils is provided for under Part II of the Wildlife Act, together with annual Game Notices promulgated under that legislation. Several of the principle game bird species (grey duck, paradise shelduck, shoveler duck, black swan and pukeko) in the Southland region are native species. Sports fish and game bird management 15. Sports fishery management sits within a framework established for freshwater fishery management and similarly game bird management within a framework of wildlife management jointly between Fish and Game Councils and the Department of Conservation in Part VB of the Conservation Act 1987. Aspects of fisheries and game bird management (such as which species should be managed where) are set 5 out in the Conservation Act. Thus species management is primarily the function of the Department of Conservation ('DoC') and Fish and Game Councils. The nature of this management is set out for each Fish and Game region in their respective statutory Sports Fish and Game Management Plans, which have been through a public process and are approved