DoC to Whitebaiters — follow the rules

Whitebaiting season is set to begin

With whitebait season to start next week, the Department of Conservation (DOC) is reminding fishers to follow the rules.

The season starts on August 15 and will run until November 30. During this time whitebaiting is permitted between 5am and 8pm or between 6am and 9pm when daylight saving starts on September 28.

DOC administers whitebaiting regulations that cover methods of fishing, location of whitebaiting sites, legal fishing times and net size.

Whitebait nets must have a mouth no larger than 4.5m (measured around the inside of the net frame) and framing material no wider than 120ml.

Drag nets must be no taller than 1m in height and be flat when laid on a flat surface. Both whitebait nets and dragnets must be no more than 3.5m in length.

No fishing gear shall exceed more than one-third of the water channel width, be used in conjunction with another person's gear to exceed more than one-third of the channel width or exceed 6m in total length.

Whitebaiters must use only one net at a time, remain within 10m of it and remove all fishing gear from the water at the end of the day.

Fishers must also be aware that they are not allowed to fish for whitebait within 20m of any tide gate, floodgate, confluence or culvert, or fish from any bridge, or from any vessel.

Unlawfully taken fish must be immediately returned to the waters from which they were obtained, taking care to ensure their survival. No person shall discard or dump on shore any fish taken when fishing for whitebait.

Illegal whitebaiting carries a maximum fine of $5000 and whitebaiting equipment can be seized.

DOC rangers will be patrolling whitebaiting sites and talking to whitebaiters throughout the season to ensure they are complying with the regulations.