No 360
House of Representatives
Supplementary Order Paper
Wednesday, 18 September 2019
Conservation (Indigenous Freshwater Fish) Amendment Bill
Proposed amendments
Hon Eugenie Sage, in Committee, to move the following amendments:
Clause 9
In clause 9, new section 26ZJ(1)(a), replace “section 26ZJA(2)”
(page 6, line 27) with “section 26ZJA(3)”
.
In clause 9, after new section 26ZJ(1)(c) (page 6, after line 31), insert:
(ca)
disturbs any sports fish that are congregating or have congregated to spawn:
In clause 9, new section 26ZJ(2), replace “Subsection (1)”
(page 7, line 4) with “Subsection (1)(a) to (c)”
.
In clause 9, new section 26ZJ(3), replace “Subsection (1)(d) and (e)”
(page 7, line 6) with “Subsection (1)(ca) to (e)”
.
In clause 9, new section 26ZJ(4), replace “section 26ZJA(3) or (4)”
(page 7, lines 8 and 9) with “section 26ZJA(4) or (5)”
.
In clause 9, replace new section 26ZJA (page 7, line 10 to page 8, line 6) with:
26ZJA Director-General may declare spawning area
(1)
The Director-General may, by notice in the Gazette, declare an area to be a spawning area if the Director-General has reasonable grounds to believe that the area—
(a)
is being used for the spawning of freshwater fish; or
(b)
is suitable for the spawning of freshwater fish.
(2)
Without limiting subsection (1), the Director-General may make a notice declaring a spawning area under that subsection on the recommendation of the New Zealand Fish and Game Council in relation to the spawning of sports fish in the area.
(3)
A person must not carry out an activity in a declared spawning area that disturbs or is reasonably likely to disturb the area unless—
(a)
the Director-General has given authorisation under subsection (4) or (5) for the activity to be carried out; and
(b)
the person complies with any conditions or restrictions specified in the authorisation.
(4)
The Director-General may, by notice in the Gazette, give authorisation for a specified activity to be carried out in a declared spawning area that disturbs or is reasonably likely to disturb the area, if the Director-General is satisfied that—
(a)
the activity would have no more than a minor effect on the suitability of the area for the spawning of freshwater fish; or
(b)
the activity is necessary for the restoration of the area; or
(c)
the purpose of the activity outweighs any adverse effect it may have on the spawning of freshwater fish in the area.
(5)
The Director-General may, on application, give a person written authorisation to carry out a specified activity in a declared spawning area that disturbs or is reasonably likely to disturb the area if the Director-General is satisfied that—
(a)
subsection (4)(a), (b), or (c) applies to the activity; and
(b)
any requirements in regulations have been met.
(6)
An authorisation under subsection (4) or (5) may be subject to any conditions or restrictions specified by the Director-General in the authorisation.
(7)
In this section, an activity disturbs a declared spawning area if it—
(a)
disturbs the spawning of freshwater fish in the area; or
(b)
makes the area less suitable for the spawning of freshwater fish in the area.
(8)
A notice under subsection (4) is a disallowable instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2012 and must be presented to the House of Representatives under section 41 of that Act.
New clause 16AA
After clause 16 (page 11, after line 15), insert:
16AA Section 51F amended (Offences relating to spawning fish)
(1)
Replace section 51F(1)(a), with:
(a)
disturb a declared spawning area within the meaning of section 26ZJA(7); or
(2)
In section 51F(1)(c), before “have”
, insert “take or”
.
(3)
After section 51F(1)(c), insert:
(ca)
disturb any sports fish that are congregating or have congregated to spawn; or
(4)
In section 51F(1)(d), replace “take, with a spear, gaff, speargun, net, trap, or similar device,”
with “with any spear, gaff, speargun, net, trap, or similar device, take”
.
Clause 16A
In clause 16A, replace new clause 4 of Schedule 1AA (page 11, lines 28 to 33) with:
4 Application of section 26ZHB(1) to whitebait fishing in conservation areas delayed
(1)
Until the date that the first notice under section 26ZHD authorising the taking of whitebait comes into force, section 26ZHB(1) does not apply to a person who fishes for whitebait from a conservation area in accordance with the Whitebait Fishing Regulations 1994 or Whitebait Fishing (West Coast) Regulations 1994.
(2)
The notice described in subclause (1) must not come into force on a date earlier than 2 years after the commencement date.
In clause 16A, new clause 6 of Schedule 1AA, replace “subsection 48(1)(na)”
(page 12, line 10) with “section 48A(1)(na)”
.