Similar protections should be applied to all orange roughy spawning areas in Aotearoa New Zealand waters.

Spawning closures should be permanent, not a temporary rebuilding measure, and closures must avoid displacing fishing effort into other spawning areas.
We highlight the need to monitor & address displacement effects, as well as improve understanding of habitats of significance & ecosystem impacts.

Submission: Proposed spawning area closure to orange roughy fishing in the East and South Chatham Rise — Environmental Law Initiative We submit

Fisheries NZ is consulting on closure options to fishing for orange roughy in the spawning areas of the East & South Chatham Rise (a key area of the world's largest orange roughy fishery). Submissions close 5pm tomorrow - see our submission guidance here: www.eli.org.nz/updates/oran...

It was only last year that we spelled out the detrimental impact bottom trawling has on the spawning grounds of orange roughy in the High Court (we're still waiting on the judgment). 

It appears that Fisheries New Zealand now accepts that very basic notion, which is welcome progress. 
#oceans

Environmental Law Initiative Protecting and restoring Aotearoa's natural resources using law and science. Species & Biodiversity | Freshwater & Wetlands | Marine Environments | Climate Change

These are things that the Fisheries Act already requires - but the Government wants to weaken them all. That's why we oppose the Fisheries Amendment Bill.

PS - We send out a monthly newsletter explaining what we are up to - visit eli.org.nz to sign up.

Environmental Law Initiative unmoved by attempt to curb judicial reviews The charity behind a string of successful judicial reviews says a 20-working day timeframe for fisheries reviews leans towards a wider crackdown on the role of the courts.

Instead of limiting public scrutiny of fisheries decisions, we would rather the Minister prioritise:
🔬Evidence‑based, precautionary decision‑making
🐟️ Environmental protection, and
👥 Transparent processes that allow for public scrutiny and accountability.

newsroom.co.nz/2026/04/07/e...
#nzpol

Reto Blattner de-Vries: Can the crayfish closure stop kina barrens? OPINION: Two High Court rulings found ministers ignored the best available science.

"How did fisheries management get it so wrong? And will the approaching east coast crayfish closure finally address it?" Read the full piece, by ELI's legal advisor, Reto Blattner de-Vries, in the Northern Advocate.
www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-adv...

The ban on commercial spiny rock lobster fishing comes into effect today across the east coast of Northland. "Aotearoa NZ’s principal fisheries law should have prevented the overharvesting of kōura (#crayfish) & the related collapse of rocky shore ecosystems on the east coast of Te Tai Tokerau.

'Rotten to the core': Backdown on baby fish plan fails to calm fisheries fury Critics say the Fisheries Amendment Bill still hands power to big quota owners.

#nzpol #fisheriesbackdown #fisheries #sustainability

www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/shane-jon...

These are major changes to the Fisheries Act - an alarming impact on NZ's ability to sustainably manage its fisheries, an undue limitation on democratic process, and in our view are contrary to NZ's obligations under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, as well as international customary law.

- Issues with oversight eg: the OIA exemption on bycatch camera footage. Cameras are the tool for verifying bycatch, protected species interactions, & discards. With no avenues for public access to footage & extraordinary penalties against anyone who releases it, it creates a transparency black hole

- The siloing of environmental considerations in the Act, meaning impacts of fishing on the ecosystem could be ignored,
- The use of non-regulatory measures to potentially justify higher take,
-The strict limitations on judicial review of fisheries decisions,

While the government has done a U-turn on scrapping minimum size limits for commercial fishers, there are bigger problems with the #Fisheries Amendment Bill. 🎣
We are deeply concerned that this bill systematically weakens sustainability provisions in the current Fisheries Act, including:
#nzpol

Yes, thank you for correcting us Christina, Carbon News, not Brief!

Quashing emissions plan would create year-long hiatus, Crown tells High Court A judicial review that has the potential to embarrass the Government, or even send it back to “square one” on its climate policies, has wrapped up in Wellington.

“I’m struggling to see how that can ... give you a high degree of confidence in anything; it sounds like ‘cross your fingers,” he told Higbee."

Read the full piece here (maybe paywalled): www.thepost.co.nz/business/360...

"He suggested the Government needed to have “a high level of confidence” ERP2 would achieve that target.
He noted that if emissions were only 1.3 million tonnes more than planned, that would breach the emissions budget.

Quashing emissions plan would create year-long hiatus, Crown tells High Court A judicial review that has the potential to embarrass the Government, or even send it back to “square one” on its climate policies, has wrapped up in Wellington.

In The Post:
"Justice Boldt questioned senior Crown counsel Polly Higbee at length on the closing day of the hearing over whether the minister had the legally-required surety that the emissions plan would meet its target of reducing net carbon emissions by 305 million tonnes over the period.

Carbon Brief also there for bits

Yes, Newsroom and The Post. Reuters there for bits.

Minister was required to do better than ‘a coin toss’ on climate — Environmental Law Initiative Three days of hearing in the Wellington High Court in Lawyers for Climate Action and Environmental Law Initiative v Minister of Climate Change, concluded this afternoon. The Minister was required b...

We've wrapped up our 3-day hearing v Minister of Climate Change at the Wgtn High Court. Now we await the Court's decision.
Thank you for all the support, from the ELI & Lawyers for Climate Action teams. Our final comments here: www.eli.org.nz/updates/clim...
#nzpol #climatelitigation #climatechange

Read the piece here: www.thepost.co.nz/business/360...

We're about to get underway for the third and final day of our hearing against the Minister of Climate Change.
If you want to catch up on what happened in Court yesterday, this is a good summary from The Post. Thank you for all the support!

#nzpol #climatelitigation #climate

The legal challenge to New Zealand’s ‘incoherent’ climate plan, explained A group of lawyers has taken the government to court, alleging its scrapping of climate policies was unlawful and its new plan is inadequate....

The legal challenge to New Zealand’s ‘incoherent’ climate plan, explained

Government's climate change plans go to the High Court Climate advocates argue the government broke the law when it dismantled dozens of climate policies, before consulting the public.

We're minutes away from getting underway at the High Court.
Here's a good summary of what is at stake: www.rnz.co.nz/news/environ...

Thank you for all the support!
#climatelitigation

Let’s ensure our laws are upheld. (8/8)

Govt's climate strategy: Let it burn Comment: The Government has relentlessly pursued policies that boost climate pollution – even if they cost more or jeopardise NZ's reputation, Marc Daalder writes

We will be posting updates from the High Court on 16–18 March.

Read a breakdown of the Govt’s climate retreats in Newsroom:https://buff.ly/0IicVcM

Learn more about the case at eli.org.nz.

In a landmark 2025 advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice set out the legal duty of nations to curb emissions and restore natural sinks.

We believe the Minister has breached both these international duties and our own Climate Change Response Act.

Aotearoa urgently needs a credible plan to protect our communities, te taiao, and the future our children will inherit.

As a country with some of the highest emissions per capita, we must do our bit in the global effort to secure a liveable future. (6/8)

A central issue is the Govt’s heavy reliance on pine plantations. 🌲

Instead of transitioning away from fossil fuels and reducing emissions at source, the Govt is leaning on short-term carbon absorption that has documented risks and doesn't provide long-term cooling. (5/8)

We’re also challenging the second plan. Evidence suggests the chances of meeting our 2026–2030 emissions budget are "not much better than a coin toss." 🪙

Currently, the country is off-track for its 2030 methane target. We need a plan based on science, not luck. (4/8)