# Outdoors > Fishing >  Possible changes to snapper limits for Area SNA1

## hunter308

Heard on the news tonight that they are considering altering the bag limits for snapper in SNA1 area for recreational anglers but sounds like no change to commercial catch limits thought they would have been considering the changes over both recreational fishermen and commercial operations. what are your views on this I agree with the idea of lowering bag limits but should be done over both sectors of fishing and maybe up the size limits too.

----------


## Maca49

I think the same and they should impose a band of upper and lower sizes to stop the targeting of the breeding stock. The should also introduce a licence to fish and have severe penalties for breaches, like one way tickets home.

----------


## The Jackel

I only keep 350mm and under 700mm, although i tend to put the bigger ones back as i find the ones under 500mm taste best.

I normally only keep 5 per person on the boat, as i don't personally need the 9 as i can go out at least once a week.

Im happy with cuts to limits and an increase, as long as there is not commercial fishing in the Hauraki Gulf or at least a reduction in commercial allowance to match the Rec guys

----------


## hunter308

My general rule of thumb for me is nothing under 35cm and nothing over 600mm and I only take enough for a feed and maybe a couple to fillet for the freezer, I even release Juvenile Kahawai and only keep the bigger ones for the smoker as well as the pan. These new limits are meant to be in place by October this year. Also I feel the FO's should be policing areas a lot more to catch these swines who like to take undersized snapper as that is one thing that pisses me off is to have someone bowl up beside me at a wharf and start hauling and keeping undersized fish and I always have a go at them for it not pointing the finger at one particular nationality as it is not just asians that are guilty of it.

----------


## Maca49

Agree but it must be amazing to new comers to NZ the abundance of fish and species, we need a one way policy. I was in Greek Island once and commented on the lack of boats fishing. Guy said commercial fishing had gutted it and the fish had never come back. Last thing we need in NZ. Should extend their limits and set up more reserves

----------


## hunter308

Agreed Maca being caught with undersized and excessive bag limits of seafood needs to be a mandatory deportable offence for immigrants and a mandatory jailable offence for Citizens instead of a slap on the wrist as well as confiscations of equipment and vehicles. Just after I left Whangarei, Reotahi which is an inner harbour spot I used to fish landbased when it was too rough to strayline the LBG spots on the Taiharuru coast got designated as a marine reserve as it has a really good reef and lots of foul ground making a good nursery for snapper never even used to get time to roll a smoke when fishing out at Reotahi and used to lose a lot of gear on the foul too and when I heard it had become a reserve I was actually pleased because of its potential as a breeding area and to have some more reefs or areas known for good snapper population should be designated as a marine reserve to try and help the snapper population regrow again but this needs to extend to areas only accessible by boats and not just land based fishing areas.

----------


## Maca49

Mayors good down here as well, I close the harbour for a few years and then put a tight limit and licence on it down here. If we don't do something tough now it will be gone, he'll look at the fishing 50 yrs ago compared with today. The technology today doesn't help either.

----------


## Toby

I take anything legal. Lucky to get 2 or 3 snapper a year so any snapper is a good one to me.

----------


## hunter308

I was actually bought up in Papamoa and remember my grandfather going out with his surfcaster and coming back with decent catches only after spending and hour or so at the beach and the same when my father and I went fishing at the beach over the back of our old house on simpson road it was generally guaranteed catches. Last time I fished Pikowai and a few places around papamoa it saddened me to see that surfcasting around there was not as successful as it was back through the 70's and 80's and even the mussel stocks around maketu have depleted and even little waihi estuary and its recent pollution from septic tanks we used to get good feeds of cockles and oysters (beds of them ontop of the sand just reach in and pick em up) out of there now it is not advisable do not know what it is like now as it has been a few years now since I fished Pukehina beach at the estuary entrance. But yeas certain areas of Tauranga Harbour would make a good reserve I know a rohi was placed on the gathering of mussels around leisure island a few years ago maybe they need to do the same with maketu for the mussels.

----------


## Maca49

They did stop the gathering at Maketu for a couple of years and when opened it was raped in weeks
Lot of greed, selflessness and waste.

----------


## hunter308

It is sad when that happens you would think people would respect the food we can get from the sea a lot more and try to conserve it a lot better after a rohi has been lifted too late to do that once it is all gone and half the problem is the ones that did it that will moan like little kids who just got their lollies taken off them about it instead of thinking about the consquences of being greedy. I remember when the mussels there were big and fat but not anymore after what I got to see back in 2010 and just decided to leave the mussels alone and go somewhere else for a fish instead was really gutted when I saw that.

----------


## Maca49

Have you fished the mussel barges

----------


## hunter308

Nope, but hoping to ge the chance one day in the near future when everything comes right.

----------


## Maca49

Let me know, I've done it a few times, good relaxing day

----------


## sakokid

I am in agreement. I have seen to many recreational fishos take as much as they can. I like catching fish as good as the next man, but I always just take home enough for a feed and that's about it. as much as I would like to take the big fish home I usually throw them back, one,  because I reckon they don't taste as good as the pannies, and two they are the breeding stock. I think 27cm for snapps is too small, and I think that it should be increased to at least 30 cm. that is my opinion anyway.

----------

