A Southland commercial diver who took 550kg of paua from a closed area off the Southland coast has been told his actions were ''carelessness bordering on recklessness'' and put a scarce resource at risk.
Dwane Herbert (26), of Athol, had earlier pleaded guilty to one charge laid by the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) of taking paua from an area near Waipapa Point lighthouse closed to commercial fishing, in breach of the Southland and Subantarctic Islands Fishing Regulations.
Sentencing him in the Invercargill District Court yesterday, Judge Christina Cook said Herbert should have checked where he was diving.
When interviewed by fisheries officers, he said he knew the closed area was nearby and had received incorrect advice from his father about where the boundary co-ordinates were.
Judge Cook said she could not determine whether Herbert had deliberately fished inside the closed area because he knew diving would be profitable for him there or whether he was there unintentionally.
''You were under an obligation as a responsible person using a scarce resource to be careful about where you were diving.
''This was carelessness bordering on recklessness. Under New Zealand's fisheries system, honesty, integrity and care is the utmost factor which must taken into account.''
She fined Herbert $7500, plus $130 court costs and $500 in solicitors' fees. His boat, fishing gear and the value of the catch have already been seized by MPI.
Herbert, a five-time junior New Zealand spearfishing champion, was observed by fisheries officers on December 5 last year diving at Waipapa Point.
When he returned to Fortrose after four hours of diving he had four baskets, 11 tubs and eight sacks of paua on board weighing 550kg.
The catch was seized but officers allowed it to be processed to preserve its value.
Judge Cook said 224kg of paua meat with a value of $22,400 was processed. Herbert, who was working for wages for another person, would have received $4800, although he received nothing, she said.
For MPI, Elliot Higbee asked for a starting point of $20,000, saying Herbert was an experienced fisherman and it was hard to believe he had not acquainted himself with the boundaries of the closed areaat some point in his career.
He had chosen to go to Waipapa Point when he knew there wasa closed area in the vicinity and was also carrying with him a map which showed the boundaries of the closed area.
For Herbert, Bill Dawkins said his client had ''candidly admitted'' he was inside the closed area and had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.
A starting point of $20,000 was ''extravagant'', he said, suggesting it should be $7500, with further discounts for Herbert's good character and early guilty plea.
Herbert would also lose his boat, which was worth about $8000 to $10,000, he said.
