A report outlining the decline of the longfin eel has prompted a call for a temporary ban on commercial eeling in Hawke's Bay until a long-term plan is formed to manage what is becoming a vanishing fishery.
Hawke's Bay Regional Council's Maori Committee wanted to write to the Government asking for its support for the temporary ban which would be put on areas preferred by the longfin eel.
It also recommended there should be areas designated for customary fishing only, such as those imposed on the Whakaki Lagoon and Poukawa basins, as well as programmes to improve the understanding of eel habitats and population numbers in the region.
The recommendations were received by the regional council at its full meeting recently and will be considered by its Environment and Services Committee for further action.
Maori Committee chairman Mike Mohi said the decision to act came after a presentation from staff which showed the decline of the endemic longfin eel. "It ties in with our concerns about the state of our waterways in Hawke's Bay. Tuna [eels] are an important part of that and are what you would call ecological indicators, marking the health of our streams.
"It's created a lot of interest among the committee and we are also worried about the development of the Ruataniwha dam and what impact that might have on eels in the Makaroro River."
An ecological report on the dam suggested a trap and transfer programme to move native fish to access habitat upstream of the proposed dam. There would also be monitoring before and after construction to compare and determine the eel population upstream of the dam.
Mr Mohi acknowledged the request to the Government was the committee "hoping for a miracle".
"We aren't expecting it to happen tomorrow but if we don't say anything now, nothing will happen in the long term. Maybe the Green Party will have more say on water conservation if they have more power after the next election, so it all adds up."
Hastings' population and industrial growth over the past 50 years has not been matched with initiatives to ensure the eel's long-term survival or the health of waterways. "Areas like Omahu Rd now have a lot of industrial buildings and the run-off from those is all going into drains and ending up in the Southland drain, which goes into the Karamu Stream.
"I'm nearly 70 now and Hastings' population has jumped from 25,000 when I was a kid to about 60,000 with a big industrial area and agricultural output which is the price we have to pay for growth."
Eels fished for tangi and other traditional events on the marae were becoming a delicacy simply because there were fewer numbers now.
"It's still very popular but now you just see it offered in lesser quantities because it's so rare."