Press Release – Sea Shepherd NZ This week DOC reported a dead Maui dolphin was found at Muriwai in February. There was once again considerable concern the Government agency took months to report a death of this critically endangered dolphin. Of equal concern is the pathology report …
This week DOC reported a dead Maui dolphin was found at Muriwai in February. There was once again considerable concern the Government agency took months to report a death of this critically endangered dolphin. Of equal concern is the pathology report where although the cause of death was noted as “Indeterminable”, illness and a large shark bite were mentioned as possible causes. Sea Shepherd would like to make it clear to interested parties that fisheries bycatch (either commercial or recreational) cannot be discounted, and it would have been judicious to also note this as a possible cause.
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Canterbury’s regional council has no plans to fast-track extra protections for endangered native dolphins, despite receiving a legal letter imploring it to take urgent action.
But she said submissions to Environment Canterbury’s (ECan) short and long term plans for more funding or district plan changes to protect their homes had fallen on “deaf ears”, so she had taken the next step. Robinson’s Resource Management Act lawyer penned a letter of legal opinion to ECan, requesting it take urgent steps to protect the dolphins or face further legal action.
Genevieve Robinson/Supplied
There are an estimated 15,000 Hector s dolphins left nationwide. The letter stated that under the New Zealand coastal policy statement, ECan had a legal obligation to “protect indigenous biological diversity in the coastal environment”.