Fishing industry urges more action against poachers

11.45am

Industry players want more to be done to protect fisheries, following the sentencing yesterday of black market paua and rock lobster smugglers.

Auckland couple China-born Zhang Yuan Da, 43, and his wife Zhong Hui Hong, 44, of Mt Albert, were among five people -- all beneficiaries -- jailed for their part in an extensive smuggling chain moving paua and rock lobster to Hong Kong and southern China.

The couple, using false names, posted as much as $1.1 million of processed paua through the mail after curing the shellfish to stop it smelling. The cost of postage alone was $76,000.

Rock Lobster Industry Council executive officer Daryl Sykes welcomed the sentences and said it was good for the country.

"It costs everybody, not just the industry," he told National Radio today.

Mr Sykes said the sentences available should be tougher, and noted the amount of paua taken by the group equalled 8000 amateur days' allowance.

"That's a huge thing to do. That's environmental vandalism on an epic scale."

Mr Sykes said stealing fish was not a new thing.

"We need to sit down and look at dedicated compliance strategies and enforcement strategies for these high value fisheries."

He said the case represented a long-term and on-going problem.

Paua Management Company chief executive Jeremy Cooper said the amount of paua harvested was seriously affected by blackmarket fishing.

"Definitely. In three areas in the last two years we've had reductions of total allowable catch. I don't think people realise the devastation these poaching or fish thieves are actually causing in the industry," Mr Cooper told National Radio.

He said quota allotments took into account the poaching traditionally of around two or three tonnes per management area.

However he said government research showed that, for the bottom of the North Island, about 200-300 tonnes a year was being taken illegally.

"That's about twice the commercial take."

Mr Cooper said the Fisheries Ministry had better knowledge how to target poachers now.

Yesterday, the ministry said Zhang and Zhong were the most serious offenders yet caught in a crackdown on paua smuggling around New Zealand in two operations codenamed Pacman and Bond.

The ministry said it believed "the pair are part of an organised criminal group, with national and international links".

In Operation Pacman, a fisheries officer went undercover to crack smugglers who were taking thousands of kilograms of paua out of the country in suitcases on flights from Auckland International Airport.

The smugglers paid thousands of dollars in excess baggage charges to fly out the seafood, wrapped in rubbish bags.

In Operation Bond, the paua was posted.

The ministry claims Zhang and Zhong mailed 5.5 tonnes of processed paua meat -- produced from around 80,000 paua -- to Hong Kong and from there it was probably shipped to southern China.

The couple bought the paua from divers or middlemen, cured the meat with chemicals to preserve it and reduce the smell, then posted it in small packages of around 18kg from post offices around Auckland, using false names.

At the sentencing in the Auckland District Court, ministry officials described the smuggling operations as the worst offending of its kind they had experienced.

Zhang and Zhong, both beneficiaries since arriving in New Zealand 11 years ago, pleaded guilty to one joint charge relating to Operation Bond.

Zhang, called the most significant offender of the five by Judge Josephine Bouchier, was sentenced to four years' jail.

Zhong was sentenced to two years' prison and was granted leave to apply for home detention.

Zhang had also pleaded guilty to further Operation Pacman charges along with Ku Chao Hsiung, 40, a chef of Pakuranga, his sister Ku Min Ying, 34 of Remuera and Thailand-born Kaewta Manee, 32 who claims to be Mr Ku's partner.

Mr Ku, facing three charges, was sentenced to three years' jail, his sister, facing two charges, was sentenced to two years' prison with leave to apply for home detention and Kaewta Manee facing one Operation Pacman charge was sentenced to imprisonment of one year with leave to apply for home detention.

Vans, cars, cash, cellphones and fridges belonging to the five were forfeited to the Crown.

While Operation Bond netted 5.5 tonnes of processed paua and Pacman 1093kg of rock lobster, 187kg of rock lobster tails and 1293kg of paua, the extent of the illegal trade is many times that.

In a statement to the court, the ministry described the impact of the blackmarket on New Zealand as "immense".

"There are many individuals who feed product into a very organised black market which supplies the local trade and the illegal export market."

While most paua is exported, black market rock lobster was consumed in New Zealand.

"The paua black market problem has now reached a stage where the estimated illegal national take in paua alone is more than 500 tonnes a year."

That equated to 11 to 14 million paua a year, costing around $36 million.

But the ministry had only 35 fishery officers in the main paua and rock lobster harvesting areas -- East Coast and around Wellington -- and they had to enforce all rules including the 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone.

Traditional policing of the paua stocks had "proven ineffective' because of the limited resources so officers had gone undercover to crack the smuggling rings, said the ministry.

- NZPA

Herald feature: Environment