Paterson Inlet

Forest and Bird, Issue 265, 1 August 1992, Page 27

Paterson Inlet

Sue Maturin

AON A Pr ON ASE eR EAS Uo hee Stewart Island’ Paterson Inlet is one of the jewels of New Zealand’ marine world. SUE MATURIN takes us to Stewart Island to look at the natural features of the inlet and to find out what’ happening about protecting it.

EN OF US were tightly buckled into our seats, ready for the half hour flight across some of New Zealand’s roughest waters to Stewart Island. In front of me sat two people with briefcases, and I guessed from their conversation they were fisheries officials and would be heading to the same place I was — a public meeting to discuss options for protecting Paterson Inlet. We caught tantalising glimpses of the inlet, a drowned river valley stretching 16 km inland from its a narrow islandcluttered entrance to the broad mudflats

of the Freshwater and Rakeahua Rivers. Unbroken forest down to the water’s edge surrounded most of the inlet’s convoluted bays and long arms. As we got out of the plane a flock of kakariki flew up and we could hear the chuckling of kaka. This is what much of New Zealand must have been like when Maori first arrived — a huge expanse of forest and the air filled with bird song. It is the forest still covering the catchment of Paterson Inlet that makes the inlet one of the least spoilt harbours in New Zealand, and one of the country’s marine treasures.

The topsoil has stayed on the land and hasn’t been washed into the inlet to smother marine life, and sunlight can penetrate further into the depths, unhindered by sediment-laden water. There are no agricultural chemicals here and no superphosphate nor industrial discharges. Salmon farms in one of the large bays are the only intrusion where wastes from the cages are covering the marine life beneath. Apart from these farms, the main disturbances to marine life in the inlet come from recreational fishers, divers and a small number of commercial fishers. Stewart Island is renowned for its

* PATERSON INLET * plentiful fish. Dame Cath Tizard in a visit there earlier this year saw them as "suicidal’"’, so easy were they to catch. Scallops, which used to be plentiful, have also been easy targets for divers and are now becoming increasingly difficult to find. Islanders tend to blame the decline on mainlanders and charter boat operators who bring scores of divers to the prime sites. Paua, according to one diver, used to be like "stones on the bottom" but not now. Crays too used to be so common that in the evening you could go out and see them covering the sand in one of the bays. Now the large crays here are almost gone. Margaret Hopkins, a local member of the Southland Conservation Board, says the inlet is a special place for recreation and inspiration for most Stewart Island residents and visitors. "Even on days when gales funnel down the inlet and the wild windswept waters set the heart racing, a boat can nearly always be found sheltering in a quiet bay somewhere," she says. But the inlet’s fish and shellfish are coming under increasing pressure. Too many people, and the inevitable greedy few, are taking a toll on the inlet’s marine life. It is this concern which has prompted the community to respond to the call by the Department of Conservation (DoC) for a public meeting to discuss ways of protecting the inlet.

ROTECTION for Paterson Inlet is not a new idea. It first arose in the mid-1980s when the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) put out a discussion paper on marine reserves for the whole southern region and identified the inlet as a potential marine park. But fears that the whole inlet may be turned into a reserve galvanised the community against it, and the idea was dropped. Now DoC is trying again, and to kick the process off they have organised two public meetings. When J arrived, the small town of Oban, with its resident population of about 400, was abuzz with the prospect of a fiery debate. Bets were laid as to how many people would turn up. DoC’s tiny visitor centre was crammed full and more chairs had to be found. Various faces were pointed out to me as belonging to paua divers, commercial fishers, recreational fishers, ratepayers, plus a smattering of Forest and Bird members. DoC’s Geoff McAlpine opened the meeting by describing marine reserves as places where people can enjoy marine life

in a protected environment. According to Geoff, New Zealand needs marine reserves for research, so we can look at how a marine community functions without exploitation, and also for insurance purposes. A marine reserve could provide the stock to re-stock areas in the event of a collapse in fisheries. Marine reserves would be useful for nature tourism. "Just look at Leigh on a mid-sum-mer weekend," he said. ""The area is

packed." "’That’s what we’re worried about," calls one islander. ""We came here to live in peace and quiet." "We don’t want the whole of Paterson Inlet locked up," calls another. "No-one is saying the whole of Paterson Inlet should be reserved," explains Greg Lind, DoC’s Stewart Island Field Centre Manager. "We’re here to get the community’s response, to find out what this community wants," he reassures some of the critics. Then it was MAF’s turn for some stick.

"The limit on fish and shell fish is far too high. Take, for example, some of the charter boats — they can have, say, ten divers who come in here for a few days and they each take ten scallops every day they’re here. That means they go home with heaps of scallops which they sell to pay for the trip. You MAF guys know about it but you don’t do anything to stop it." MAF’s Anthony Brett replies that the bag limits are under review. Then Phil Clarke from the Fisherman’s Association speaks up. He thinks

Nationally and internationally significant ESPITE the intrusion of humans the tall podocarp forests surrounding Paterson Inlet have remained relatively undisturbed. The largely pristine catchment results in very low rates of sedimentation which may explain why a variety of brachiopods (sometimes called "lampshells"’) are common on the floor of the inlet. Brachiopods have a long fossil history, first appearing over 500 million years ago. Abundant up to about 70 million years ago there are now only 300-odd species world-wide, about 30 of which live in the seas around New Zealand. While superficially resembling bi-valve molluscs such as scallops, brachipods represent an unrelated group. Paterson Inlet is of special interest to scientists because here the brachiopods are within easy diving depths, compared with almost everywhere else where researchers have to dredge for them. Two species in Paterson Inlet, unlike the vast majority of brachiopods

which are permanently attached to a hard substrate, become free-lying on the sea bed. In the words of one palaeontologist, the Paterson Inlet brachiopods are "the closest thing in today’s world to the Palaeozoic". The study of these living brachiopods provides clues to life in ancient seas and changes in past marine environments. Seaweeds grow in a great profusion of colourful gardens in the inlet — about 270 species altogether — making it one of New Zealand’s richest and most diverse seaweed communities. Massive bull kelps and luxuriant submarine Macrocystis forests cling to the rocky shores of the outer inlet and islands. Among these forests the blue cod, blue moki and greenbones along with many other reef fish hide and feed. In the more sheltered middle sections of the inlet bright red Rhodymenia seaweeds cover the muds, stabilising them and providing suitable habitats for several brachiopod species. In shallower waters unusually extensive meadows of another red algae, Lenormandia, provide homes for a wide range of worms, shellfish, sea squirts and sponges. Scallops too are often

found buried in the mud amongst the red algal fronds. Their young recruits find refuge on the seaweeds. Why is there such a diversity of seaweeds in Paterson’s Inlet? The answer lies in the many different habitats from reefs and various types of rocky shores, beaches and sand dunes, to clean sandy bottoms and open mud flats. An almost completely unmodified range of vegetation types stretches from the highest slopes of the catchment down to the shoreline into the inlet through a diverse group of communities on the sea floor and out into Foveaux Strait. Estuarine mud flats at the head of the inlet and around the upper reaches of its bays and arms are some the of the few in New Zealand still in their natural state. They are vital for the functioning of the entire inlet. They are nursery areas for many fish species, and feeding grounds for the many wading birds which come here to feed on the cockles, crabs and worms. One oystercatcher alone can eat more than 350 cockles in one day; over a year a large flock might eat millions. Rare New Zealand dotterels feed

here too, resting at high tide with other waders on the dunes of The Neck taiapure areas. Paterson Inlet not only has many unusual and scientifically important features but it also has habitats once typical of New Zealand’s many harbours. Protected, it could become a focus for marine education and tourism. Nature tourism has already given

Stewart Island a unique night life, with "After Dark" glass-bottom boat adventures, twilight tours for bird watchers and Philip Smith’s never-fail kiwi spotting trips. Who knows? There could be further dusk delights such as crayfish tours. With a marine reserve, cray may in time, once again come out in great numbers to feed across the sandy bottoms.

Paterson Inlet is worthy of protection but a marine reserve isn’t the whole answer. "The inlet could have its own bag limits, and we need to protect people’s traditional interests. Virtually everyone here goes fishing on the inlet. We need a working party," he finishes. This puts the ball back into DoC’s camp and Greg Lind takes the cue. He suggests that they could set up a working party as a committee of the Conservation Board. It would be an independent body and DoC and MAF could act as official advisers. There is general agreement with the idea and a huge list of groups that should be represented are drawn up. HAT WAS IN November last year and a committee was very quickly established with local representatives from recreational and commercial fishers, marine farmers, charter boat operators, ratepayers, Forest and Bird and the Southland Conservation Board. The terms of reference were to advise

the Director-General of Conservation on proposals for protection of the natural marine values of the inlet. The committee has met several times, but Margaret Hopkins, who chairs it says little progress has been made. The problem seems to be that DoC and MAF see themselves having different and competing statutory roles and different consultation processes. DoC is an advocate for marine protection and MAF for fisheries management, although DoC also has statutory responsibility for marine reserves and MAF for taiapure areas. In places like Paterson Inlet all these functions may be relevant. The committee needs the help and support of both departments who should be giving it information and advice. Current legislation does not easily provide for a range of protective mecha-

nisms such as no-take and restricted-take areas, although the Mayor Island model shows that it can be done. In that case DoC was asked to investigate a specific reserve proposal by the Maori owners of the island. A working party, similar to that on Stewart Island, but with wider regional and national representation was set up, and recommended not only a marine reserve but also the establishment of a restricted fishing area to be implemented through regulations promulgated by MAF. Despite the conflict between officials, the Paterson Inlet committee generally supports a marine reserve, as well as wider protection, possibly through a package of fishing restrictions, for the inlet’s fisheries. Merv Whipp, a marine farmer says there is general support for restrictions such as no netting, no trawling, no com-

mercial shellfish harvest and no dragging for scallops. There is also substantial support for taiapure areas. Opinions vary on the siting of a marine reserve with some wanting to start small, and others wanting to ensure that all the marine habitats are represented. Phil Clarke, who represents the commercial fishers says that "it’s not likely that the group will recommend a reserve of an ideal size from the conservation perspective, but that a reserve combined with a set of fishing restrictions will afford a pretty high degree of protection for the inlet". Stewart Islanders don’t seem to suffer from the nimby (not-in-my-back-yard) syndrome that afflicts many mainland communities. Nevertheless there is a danger in setting up a predominantly local group with conflicting interests to advise DoC on how and what they want to protect. For, although conservation by local community consensus is an ideal goal, it may not result in protection for easily accessible areas, which have a rich diversity of marine life, or areas large enough to represent a wide range of habitats. The process also risks disenfanchising the wider regional and national community by giving locals a disproportionate influence in shaping marine reserves. We may also be in danger of establishing reserves only in areas where there is least conflict — a bit like our national park system, which has proved so inadequate in protecting habitat and species diversity. Our generation has missed out on knowing what the oceans once looked like without exploitation. Marine reserves are an opportunity to make sure the next generations are better off. To succeed in establishing a comprehensive network of marine reserves, DoC and conservationists may need to.be stronger and more professional advocates. For Paterson Inlet, the process has begun thanks to DoC’s initiative. It will be a challenge for the local community to prove that conservation by local consensus is possible and to come up with proposals which will not only meet the islanders’ approval, but also those of the wider national community.

Acknowledgements Thanks to Dr Daphne Lee, Otago University, for information on brachiopods. %

is Forest and

Bird’s Otago/Southland field officer. She is based in Dunedin and previously worked for the Otago Fish and Game Council.