National Plan of Action to reduce the incidental catch of seabirds in New Zealand Fisheries 2013.

This New Zealand NPOA-Seabirds 2013, taking account of the BPTG, establishes New Zealand’s approach to reducing the incidental mortality of seabirds from fishing. It sets out a long term objective, some supporting high level subsidiary objectives and objectives to be met within the first five years. It outlines the management mechanisms for ensuring that the objectives are achieved including through the establishment of clear accountabilities for overall progress and a process of annual reporting and review of fisheries specific objectives contained in the national annual and five year fisheries planning documents.
The Plan seeks to ensure that: i) awareness of the problem and the known methods of reducing it is heightened both domestically and internationally; ii) relevant effective mitigation methods are applied in all New Zealand fisheries and by New Zealand vessels on the high seas; iii) capture rates are reducing towards negligible levels in all New Zealand fisheries; iv) the development of new mitigation measures, new observation and monitoring methods, and relevant research are encouraged and resourced; v) priority for the application of existing mitigation measures, the development of new mitigation measures and the introduction of other relevant actions are determined in accordance with the level of risk faced by particular seabird species; and vi) active co-operation is established with other countries whose vessels have interactions with seabirds, particularly those that breed in New Zealand, including through relevant RFMOs and through bilateral information sharing and assistance where relevant.
The long term objective states that New Zealand seabirds thrive without pressure from fishing related mortalities, New Zealand fishers avoid or mitigate against seabird captures and New Zealand fisheries are globally recognised as seabird friendly. The high level subsidiary objectives of this NPOA-Seabirds 2013 are: i) Practical objective: All New Zealand fishers implement current best practice mitigation measures relevant to their fishery and aim through continuous improvement to reduce and where practicable eliminate the incidental mortality of seabirds. ii) Biological risk objective: Incidental mortality of seabirds in New Zealand fisheries is at or below a level that allows for the maintenance at a favourable conservation status or recovery to a more favourable conservation status for all New Zealand seabird populations. iii) Research and Development objectives: a) the testing and refinement of existing mitigation measures and the development of new mitigation measures results in more practical and effective mitigation options that fishers readily employ; b) research and development of new observation and monitoring methods results in improved cost effective assurance that mitigation methods are being deployed effectively; and c) research outputs relating to seabird biology, demography and ecology provide a robust basis for understanding and mitigating seabird incidental mortality. iv) International objective: In areas beyond the waters under New Zealand jurisdiction, fishing fleets that overlap with New Zealand breeding seabirds use internationally accepted current best practice mitigation measures relevant to their fishery
The five year objectives of this NPOA-Seabirds 2013, all to be achieved by 30 June 2018, are: i) Five year practical objectives: a) all New Zealand commercial fishing vessels are shown to be implementing current best practice mitigation measures relevant to their area and fishery; b) recreational and customary non-commercial fishers understand the risks their fishing activities pose to seabirds, relevant organisations support and promote the use of best practice mitigation measures and it is the cultural norm in New Zealand to use such measures; and c) capture rates are reducing in all New Zealand fisheries in accordance with reduction targets in the relevant planning documents for those fisheries. ii) Five year biological risk objective: The level of mortality of New Zealand seabirds in New Zealand commercial fisheries are reduced so that species currently categorised as at very high or high risk from fishing move to a lower category of risk. iii) Five year research and development objectives: a) where existing mitigation measures are impractical or of limited effectiveness in reducing the mortality of New Zealand seabirds, new or improved mitigation measures have been sought and where identified are under development for all priority fisheries or fishing methods (e.g. those identified in paragraph 23 and via the risk assessment); b) new observation and monitoring methods, especially in relation to poorly observed fisheries, are researched, developed and implemented; and c) programmes of research to improve our understanding of and ability to mitigate seabird incidental mortality for at risk species are underway and key projects for very high risk species have been completed. Five year international objectives: In areas beyond the waters under New Zealand jurisdiction, relevant RFMOs and governments (and also relevant industry organisations, fishing companies and fishers) understand the potential risk posed to New Zealand seabirds from fishing activities for which they have responsibility and are taking actions to reduce that risk where it is likely to be high.