''This is very much the first pass. There are still many, many more conversations to be had,'' South East Marine Protection Forum chairwoman Maree Baker Galloway said.
The forum has been charged with advising the Government on what form of marine protection it should apply to the southeastern coast.
Forum members have been holding public meetings throughout the region for months. Some meetings have been impassioned, with one in Dunedin attracting nearly 100 people who had a lengthy debate about marine protection.
Forum members would continue to meet members of the public, Ms Baker-Galloway said, but now they would also ''start to draw lines on maps''.
Once the forum develops a draft recommendation, it will open the draft for public consultation.
The final recommendations are due in June 2016.
