For immediate release
8 April 2025
North Canterbury Fish and Game fails to admit the main reasons for the declining state of the region’s trout and salmon recreational fisheries, says the New Zealand Federation of Freshwater Anglers. Freshwater Anglers President Casey Cravens said Fish and Game has a blind spot when it came to the acknowledging the main cause of declining habitat for trout, salmon and native fish and birds.
“Fish and Game needs a reality check. Why won’t they acknowledge that water abstraction for irrigation and hydro generation are the main drivers behind the collapse of the river’s ecosystem? And why won’t they publicly question ECan’s mismanagement of resource consents on a nationally treasured river? It’s because it’s far easier to blame ocean temperatures than political malfeasance,” Cravens said. “And this is typical of how successive governments have muzzled the organisation’s once great efforts in environmental advocacy.”
He was responding to North Canterbury Fish and Game’s March 24 post in which the organisation blamed ocean environmental conditions– rather than the fact that Environment Canterbury abetted Manawa (formerly Trustpower) and dairy and irrigation interests in their wholesale plunder of New Zealand’s most important braided river, wiping out 95 percent of its salmon and sea-trout runs as well as native fish and bird species.
Smelt Threatened with Extinction
Cravens pointed out that his volunteer organisation was having to “take up the slack” from Fish and Game and the Department of Conservation’s (DOC) lack of political will to defend a river with a national Water Conservation Order on it. “Neither organisation is fulfilling their duties to protect the ecosytem,” he said. “They both need to show more backbone.”
Cravens added that it is particularly troubling that neither DOC or Fish and Game understand the river’s cornerstone species, the Stokell’s smelt, which is threatened with extinction.
Stokell’s smelt, a once abundant species of smelt unique to Canterbury’s larger braided rivers and the primary basis of the food web of the lower reaches of these rivers, has become virtually extinct. This decline is due to a lack of “environmental” or flushing flows, which in turn is the result of massive water abstraction for irrigation and hydro generation.
“While native and recreational fisheries rely on this food source along with endangered species of gull and terns, DOC has no management plan for this endangered species of native fish,” said Dr Peter Trolove immediate past NZFFA president.
The NZ Federation of Freshwater Anglers has been monitoring nitrate levels for several years in Canterbury’s waterways. The monitoring revealed abnormally high nitrate levels in many of Canterbury’s groundwater-sourced rivers and streams. These levels are directly toxic to aquatic life, from invertebrates to trout eggs and fry.
Salmon Run of 20K Fish Flatlines
The quinnat (chinook) salmon fishery has plummeted with much fewer fish and of low average size over the decades.
In 1996 the total annual run of salmon in the Rakaia was 20,000 fish. In 2017 it was estimated at 2,000. With just 7 fish caught over the weekend of the Rakaia Salmon Competition in 2025, visits to the Rakaia River’s once nationally and internationally recognised salmon fishery appear pointless. Cravens said it was important to ascertain why North Canterbury Fish and Game had not considered Manawa’s and ECan’s involvement in the decline of the Rakaia River’s ecosystem, the effect on the public’s trout and salmon fisheries and the subsequent fragility of the statutory Water Conservation Order, akin to a National Park protection status.
“We’ve been told there have been discussions between the three. Has any money passed between North Canterbury Fish and Game and Manawa?” he asked. It is a matter of record that a large payment was made by Trustpower (now Manawa) to NC F&G at a meeting in February 2012 that provided “reassurance that the altered flows of the proposed Lake Coleridge Project “would not adversely affect the outstanding Rakaia River fisheries.” Then suddenly Fish and Game switched from opposing Trusptpower’s application to amend the Rakaia NWCO to supporting it.
What’s up, DoC?
Cravens was also critical of the Department of Conservation whose statutory obligation is to protect native fish populations and native aquatic invertebrates, as well as undertaking an advocacy role for the environment. “Where does DOC stand in this? It seems to have forgotten its role, ” he added.
The days of making a special trip south to fish the Rakaia are over as its hours of chuck and hope rewarded by nothing. Water extraction is mostly to blame and the nitrates seeping into the groundwater from the dairying is also adding to the problem. I’m afraid until the dairy industry goes full cycle and sheep and cropping return to the Canterbury plains its curtains for clean water and more costs to the ratepayers as the deal with the pollution fallout and the next generation of farmers trying to re energise tired polluted land. Yesterday I sat watching banks of irrigates spraying water on paddocks and yet it had rained all the day before and all night and was still raining AND the paddocks were as green as you can get! Somebody has to sort this out.
Well said Alan Simmons.
It all goes back to the “communistic” takeover of the democratically elected Environment Canterbury Council (ECan) back in 2010 when Prime Minister John Key and Environment Minister (that’s ironic) Nick Smith spearheaded the dictatorial move. It was trampling over democracy – a state seizing of control – so corporate dairying had a clear run to wholesale expansion over the Canterbury Plains. Key and Smith should hang their heads in shame.
ECan never really recovered from that trauma.
As to today and the demise of the rivers where is DoC? Where is Fish and Game?
One comprises public servants, the other comprises councillors elected to serve the voting public and the public interest.
Where is the current Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment?
National should realise the situation Key, Smith and cabinet colleagues of the time have put the rivers and environment in now and not hesitate to at least remedy the situation and avert a total crisis.
Despite the draconian recently passed undemocratic Fast Track Approvals law (ignoring of select committee process for public’s right to make input), National and its coalition parties forming government have a double obligation because of the Key/Smith power grab, to correct the injustice with action.
The Central South Island salmon fishery has also declined to nearly nothing. Recent reports show that the CSI salmon fishery is approximately one tenth the size of what it was back in the 1990’s. Nobody seems to care…
The decline of the South Island salmon fishery can be put down to various factors that have worsened over the past two or three decades. Too much water is taken from our rivers for agriculture, underground aquifers (underground and rivers is total water resource)being depleted for irrigation, fertiliser and chemical runoff, corporate dairying practices, wild salmon genetic factors eroded by well meaning but poorly thought out large scale smolt releases, etc.,
Fish and Game need an injection of new blood via the election process. BUT apathy is common.
The problem is simple. Dairy and irrigation interests own our government. That’s what allows five thousand farmers to take clean water away from five million kiwis. New Zealand needs to beef up its conflict of interest laws. We should put an end to Fonterra and Federated Farmers lobbyists from becoming cabinet ministers. The reform should go beyond that. Fish and Game must remain independent of government interference. The National Party and ACT want to suck Fish and Game into the Department of Conservation, another politically castrated entity betraying their constitutional and statutory duties. Fish and Game has managed to remain one of the strongest voices in the fight for sane freshwater management, but now North Canterbury Fish and Game as well as the national body lack a CEO. In this vacuum of leadership, the good-ole-boys network of dairy and irrigation lobbyists and “consultants” move in like sea-lice. Those who earn a living from polluting our rivers shouldn’t play any role in regulating its hunting and fishing and environmental advocacy. They are foxes in the henhouse. The entire idea of a Hunting and Fishing Minister is illegitimate because Fish and Game is totally self funded. They don’t take a cent from taxpayers. Therefore, the politically corrupt ministers have no business squelching Fish and Games dissent. It would further benefit the organisation if all license holders were already enrolled to vote, and the national council should be elected directly, by license holders–not by other regional councils. Licenseholders already note rot has crept into too many regional Fish and Game councils as well as the national office, which under the last CEO would regularly appear with National Party leaders in campaign T-shirts, demonstrating cabinet has successfully domesticated Fish and Game. Licenseholders also note how the national magazine no longer advocates for freshwater reform. Fish and Game must act to preserve its own credibility or it will be held in the same contempt so many anglers, hunters and conservationists feel for the Department of Conservation.
What a Crying Shame it all is ? The “Water Hogs” have taken over !
John Mulgan is correct to observe te mediocre way of fish and game councils. The solution is for Fish and Game to self scrutiny with a primary objective to galvanise the licence holders into greater participation in the council, i.e. nominees for regional councils and to instilling licence holder interest to get a higher voting turn-out at three yearly elections.
John Mulgan is correct
The Department of Conservation is not an alternative to fish and game councils. The department is a bureaucracy and it shows in the crisis surrounding water resources. As NZFFA president rightly queries, “Where is DoC?” AWOL.
Besides DoC’s persistence with 1080 to those who understand and know the back country is full of slyness and deceit, selective ignoring of valid science and against ecosystem management. There are other poor performances such as the land deal it had done with the Ruataniwha irrigation scheme here in Hawkes Bay.
So DoC hands off–Fish and Game, quickly do some self scrutiny and up the advocacy and performance.
It is naive of fish and game to blame ocean conditions for the fishery’s decline when it is so obvious, excessive irrigation is the major factor, plus nitrate contamination.
At least F & G is doing something if misdirected but it’s got to be more realistic or is it honest? DoC is no-where to be seen. As an earlier comment said “absent without leave.” Or is it MIS – “missing in action”?
A pat on the back for NZFFA.
sad the gov is letting this happen to such a small country. but NZ not so 100% pure anymore I guess that’s why the changed the tourist slogan?