Image used is by QFSE Media, used under CC BY-SA 3.0 NZ
On 9 October 2025, the Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust applied for a two-year fisheries closure of intertidal zones in the east coast of Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, covering all invertebrates and seaweeds. This was guided by the long-standing iwi harvest management practice of rāhui, a sustainable mode of upholding ecosystem health practiced by Ngāti Manuhiri for generations.
Fisheries New Zealand invited written submissions on the proposal through the Ministry for Primary Industries. On 27 November, the Institute for Marine Science and Ngā Ara Whetū worked together on a response.
We strongly support the leadership and kaitiakitanga of Ngāti Manuhiri, and the protection and rejuvenation of the Hauraki Gulf ecosystem that this rāhui will bring. We also affirm the holistic strategy that Ngāti Manuhiri outlined, considering a range of crucial elements of environmental protection: restoration, education, and community.
Furthermore, we highlight the role of academic institutions in revitalising te moana: research, education, and public engagement with environmental science are the primary ways that we can support the kaitiakitanga of iwi. For these contributions, we occasionally need to take specimens from the area – we propose that these do not present significant harm to the biospheres, but could be construed as contradictory to the rāhui. As such, we advocate a collaborative approach between scientific work and Ngāti Manuhiri in order to continue our research and education, keep building future environmental knowledge, and support the kaitiakitanga of Ngāti Manuhiri as best we can.
Click here to read the submission.
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