Rules to help sea farming prosper

By IRENE CHAPPLE

After eight years of red tape, Greenshell New Zealand's Peter Vitasovich was confident that approval for the company's marine farm applications was just months away.

But the biggest barrier was yet to come.

In the mid-1990s, the company lodged five applications with Environment Waikato, covering 100ha of water in the Firth of Thames.

Since then, Environment Waikato varied its coastal plan to accommodate the Resource Management Act, and to identify potential Aquaculture Management Areas.

Vitasovich says the plan is now held up as an example for other councils to follow.

Greenshell's applications had been tailored to reflect Environment Waikato's changes.

As far as Vitasovich was concerned, they were ready for the final tick.

The trouble was, all around New Zealand, other, much larger, applications were hurriedly being prepared to capture some of the millions of export dollars the young industry promises.

What has been described as a gold rush was in full flight.

Last November 28 the Government responded without warning, imposing a two-year moratorium on all marine farm applications.

The moratorium was to allow time to prepare proper coastal planning, rather than keep the ad hoc system of the past.

When Vitasovich heard the news he was shocked. Then angry.

As the northern area's representative on the Mussel Industry Council he was bombarded with calls and faxes from marine farmers venting their annoyance at the sudden move.

The moratorium halted all applications, even those close to being finalised.

The Government backed down when there was a huge outcry and weakened the Aquaculture Moratorium Amendment Bill during the select committee stages.

The concession meant applications that had been publicly notified, or were close to notification, were allowed through.

Unfortunately for Greenshell, despite eight years of waiting and paying tens of thousands of dollars, its applications had not been publicly notified.

Pleas to the select committee for an exemption were unsuccessful.

However, the select committee did provide that local authorities could use discretion to allow applications.

Greenshell has asked Environment Waikato for discretionary exemption, but Vitasovich continues to wait.

He believes an answer will come soon, and is worried about making a public issue of it.

At the close of our interview, once the tape is off, Vitasovich feels more comfortable. "We really do need this," he says quietly.

He needs it because the planned expansion has the potential to double his company's output, now around 4000 tonnes a year, 95 per cent of which is exported.

Greenshell employs eight people, working with a collective on the Coromandel, assisting a dozen smaller farmers in supply and distribution.

Altogether, applications for Coromandel water space now caught in the moratorium could double the area's aquaculture output, says Vitasovich. That would employ hundreds of people, both on the water and in processing factories.

The northern area alone - Great Barrier Island, Coromandel, the Firth of Thames and Waiheke - produces around 20,000 tonnes of mussels a year, and Vitasovich says that could reach 40,000 in five years. To cries from the environmental corner, Vitasovich says there is room for all water users.

He accepts the industry needed controls, and echoes Fisheries Minister Pete Hodgson when he says "something had to be done".

But he believes the moratorium, combined with constraints under the Resource Management Act, could shackle the industry for up to six years.

The industry's frustrations showed up during last month's Seafood Industry Council conference. Jokes about "tip-toeing past [Conservation Minister] Sandra Lee" to get final marine farm approval received roars of laughter.

Green Party co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons was heckled about the fishing industry and accused of not understanding the issues.

A speaker from conservation group WWF rattled through her speech, tripping over some words. Her discomfort was exacerbated by the audience's lack of response to her words.

For people like Vitasovich, farming the sea is attractive not just for the lifestyle, but also because of its export potential.

A much-stated goal is for aquaculture to exceed $1 billion in sales by 2020. Last year, the industry made almost $300 million. Twenty years ago it was tiny, at $11 million.

But Hodgson's calm approach appears to have soothed the industry. At the conference, he spoke of taking stick for introducing the moratorium.

"But many people admitted in the same breath something had to done to clean up the management of aquaculture," he said. "It should have been done years ago, but it wasn't, so we're doing it now."

The amendments to the Act have deflected much of the criticism, particularly from Maori. Most of the applications caught in the moratorium were from Maori interests but many were released after the select committee's amendments.

Graeme Coates, executive officer of the New Zealand Marine Farming Association, supports Hodgson's steady approach. In last month's Aquaculture News he wrote: "Pete Hodgson has not only grasped the need for a vastly improved legislative environment but he also appreciates the dynamics of the industry and the inter-relationships of economics and the environment."

Other government sectors are also showing support, with Industry New Zealand pledging tens of thousands of dollars for consultants to liaise between regional councils and the industry.

The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research is busy exploring options for diversification of aquaculture. At the moment greenshell mussels dominate aquaculture exports but other species that may be able to be farmed in the future include seahorse, turbot and eels.

According to Hodgson: "Aquaculture is a huge supplier of protein to world food markets. It offers enormous promise for both national and regional economic development but we need to make room for it to grow in a way that is sustainable and effectively managed, or we will lose out.

"We cannot have aquaculture bogged down, 20 years from now, by public antipathy and environmental problems caused by an industry that has grown chaotically."