A stunning new document spotlights 'The Voices of the Gulf', as the commencement of Roundtables signals the next phase of work.

July 2014 Click here to view online
Sea Change
Our next phase

Kia ora,

Here’s something I learned this month: there are very few better ways to spend a morning than watching the sun rise while on a boat on Mercury Bay…

Last weekend I had the great privilege of working with the Stakeholder Working Group (SWG) in Whitianga for two days of intense work on Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari, developing the Hauraki Gulf marine spatial plan. Nothing could bring home the importance of this project more than spending time in the glorious surrounds of Whitianga and Mercury Bay.

Many people in this area rely on the Gulf for their livelihood, as well as enjoying it for its beauty and the lifestyle opportunities it offers. They have an intimate understanding of how pressures on the Gulf need to be managed – because they see the effects of those pressures every day. While much of our time in Whitianga was spent head-down at work in a meeting room, we also took the opportunity to visit the OPC mussel processing plant and get out on a boat in Mercury Bay in the company of some eloquent and knowledgeable mana whenua, marine scientists and local fishermen.  

Our thanks go out to the many locals – including some of our own SWG members – who shared their knowledge, gave us such insight into the area and made us feel very welcome indeed.   

In this issue of our newsletter, our SWG progress report takes a final look at the ‘Listening Post’ events, which have now been completed. The results from these events, held over six months right around the Gulf area, have been summarised into a truly inspiring document which I hope you will take the time to read.

We also take a brief look at the terms of reference for our issues-based Roundtables. From now until December 2014, Roundtables will be the key way we progress our work. To help keep you in the loop, from next month we’ll introduce you to one Roundtable topic in each newsletter and let you know about opportunities to contribute to their work.

Finally, continuing our focus on Whitianga, we introduce you to two of the Whitianga-based SWG members – Alison Henry and Alan Proctor – who bring very different skills to the table, but share a long-term vision for improving the gulf – its ecology, its economy and the health and wellbeing of its communities.

Thank you again for your support and interest as we work towards safeguarding the gulf as a healthy, productive and sustainable resource for all users. It’s vital that everyone who values the Hauraki Gulf knows about this project, so please encourage friends, family and colleagues to stay in the loop by signing up for these monthly updates.

Best wishes to all,
Nick Main, Stakeholder Working Group Independent Chair.

Listening Posts

From December 2013 to June 2014, Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari undertook a series of ‘Listening Posts’ around the Hauraki Gulf – with particular emphasis placed on connecting with people in small, rarely consulted groups and communities.

Listening Posts have now been completed. The extraordinary knowledge and ideas captured through them have been summarised into a booklet entitled ‘The Voices of the Gulf’, now available for download below or via the Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari website.

The Voices of the Gulf offers an intriguing, inspiring and sometimes unsettling insight into the Hauraki Gulf, from the people who know it best. It is an invaluable piece of work and a tremendous resource for the SWG. Once again, our thanks go out to all those who participated in Listening Posts from one end of the Hauraki Gulf area to the other.       

View and download your copy of 'The Voices of the Gulf' (PDF file, 2.8Mb]).
Roundtables commence

The past few months have been a busy time for the SWG as they have built their knowledge of the opportunities and challenges facing the Gulf.

Following many presentations and requests for information, the SWG has established six issues-based ‘Roundtables’ to break the work of Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari into manageable pieces. The issues to be considered by the six Roundtables are:

  • water quality and catchments
  • fish and fish stocks
  • biodiversity and biosecurity
  • infrastructure and commercial uses
  • aquaculture
  • accessible gulf – including recreation, boating, heritage and visitors.

These Roundtables will be the primary tool for the SWG to progress its detailed investigations on these issues from now until December 2014. The SWG will continue to work on the overarching themes of the ecology, economy and mauri of the Gulf.

Each Roundtable comprises three or more SWG members, plus other invited participants who have specific knowledge or expertise in the topics under discussion. These individuals represent a range of different stakeholders and mana whenua with an interest in the topic areas and in the Hauraki Gulf. Each Roundtable will:

  • receive and provide information
  • discuss and debate issues and aspirations
  • identify options and try to resolve conflicts.

All this will assist the SWG fulfil its obligation to produce the Hauraki Gulf Marine Spatial Plan.

You can read more about the the Roundtables on our website and view their overarching terms of reference. Over coming months, each Roundtable will be ‘testing their thinking’ through various online outreaches. Please keep an eye on the website and these newsletters for details on ways to have your say in the work of the Roundtables.

The 14 members of the Stakeholder Working Group – or SWG – are the core of the ‘outside in’ collaboration model that is the basis of the Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari project. SWG members come from a wide range of backgrounds and bring with them a wealth of skills and experience. In each issue of this newsletter, we’ll introduce you to some of the SWG members. This month, meet some of the ‘Whitianga crew’ – conservation advocate Alison Henry and keen game fisherman Alan Proctor.

 
Alison Henry

The Hauraki Gulf is integral to the fabric of Alison Henry’s professional and family life. With her husband Alan, three adult children and four grandchildren she enjoys catching (and eating!) fish, diving and snorkelling, helping with restoration activities and spending the days of early summer as a dotterel ‘prefect’.

Alison worked for the Department of Conservation in Auckland in the 1990s. She was responsible for public awareness of conservation issues and activities and was involved with projects to protect native species and restore island habitats in association with community groups and tangata whenua.

In a private capacity Alison was a trustee for the Motutapu Restoration Trust, the Te Araroa (the Long Pathway) Trust and Project Crimson as well as being part of the QEII covenanters group with a large block of regenerating forest on the Whangapoua Harbour.

Alison and husband Alan moved to Cooks Beach in 2002. Alison was elected as a member of the Mercury Bay Community Board, serving for nine years. She represented the Thames Coromandel District Council on the Hauraki Gulf Forum, completed Resource Management Commissioner training, was a member of the District Plan Review Committee, and a trustee of Kauri 2000 carrying out replanting of kauri on the Coromandel Peninsula. In all this involvement, communicating with communities has been an important part of the work.
Alan Proctor

As the manager of the Mercury Bay Game Fishing Club, Alan Proctor is well-known both to the locals of Whitianga and those who visit for a weekend of game fishing. Alan has a strong business background, having owned and managed various small to medium businesses for around 24 years.

Alan lives in Whitianga with his wife and two younger children, with his two older children now based in Auckland and Perth. Alan values the slower pace of life in Whitianga and the opportunities it presents for his two passions: fishing and golf. (Alan rates a great day as one where he can do ‘Gulf and golf’ in the same 24 hours…) His record catch in eight years as a game fisherman is a 120-kilo striped marlin. 

Alan believes strongly in the idea of putting time back into community-focused issues and representing recreational fishers. He is a member of stakeholder group ‘Destination Boat Ramp Whitianga’ and was mandated by the NZ Sport Fishing Council to join the Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari Stakeholder Working Group.

“I think everyone wants to see a more cohesive approach from all the parties interested in the Hauraki Gulf,” said Alan. “Coming on board with Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari was an opportunity to be part of this important process and help the recreational fishing community understand more of what Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari is all about.”
Radio NZ Hauraki Gulf feature

On Thursday 26 June, Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari featured in Alison Ballance's 'Our Changing World' programme on Radio New Zealand.

As well as talking about the Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari process, this excellent, in-depth broadcast focused on the declining health and ecology of the Gulf and on the Bryde’s whale and ship strike issue as an example of collaborative problem solving.  

If you missed the original broadcast, you can listen to the programme online, via the Radio NZ website. 

Don't forget!

For those who have already registered, Auckland Hauraki 100+ is this Thursday, 3 July, 6-8pm at The Viaduct Events Centre, 161 Halsey Street, Auckland. We look forward to seeing you there.

(Please note registrations have closed for this event, but keep an eye out in these newsletters as there are other Sea Change – Tai Timu Tai Pari events coming soon!)
Did you know?

You can track the SWG’s progress through meeting notes posted on the website. We also publish the presentations and supporting papers we have used to inform our work. Please feel free to share your views with us as we continue to build our knowledge – we are very much in ‘listening mode’ and want to hear from you.

You can email us via contact@seachange.org.nz. We look forward to hearing from you. 
Hauraki Gulf Marine Park
In partnership with mana whenua and the following agencies:
Hauraki Gulf Forum
Ministry for Primary Industries
Department of Conservation - Te Papa Atawhai
Waikato Regional Council
Auckland Council
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