The proposal, which is up for consultation this month, would result in a reduction in quota of 25% for both the commercial and recreational limits.
The customary limit would also be changed as it has been fishing above its allowable take.
A report by Fisheries NZ said the Otago and Southland pāua fishery was an important shared fishery highly valued by Māori, recreational fishers and the commercial fishing industry alike.
All the catch was taken by hand while free diving or by wading from shore.
A formal management procedure was being developed to support industry voluntary measures and guide total allowable commercial catch (TACC) decisions.
But in the interim, quota holders have requested the TACC be reduced by 25% to align with recent catch and initial results from MP outputs, formalising voluntary shelving.
Recreational settings for the fishery have not been reviewed despite previous reductions to the total allowable catch (TAC) and TACC.
It is also proposing to adjust the customary allowance in line with catch which has been higher than the current allowance of three tonnes.
The report said some stakeholders and tangata whenua have raised concerns about reductions in available fishing areas along the Otago coastline.
This was through closures to pāua fishing such as in the East Otago Taiāpure and marine reserves, which come into existence today, which were displacing recreational fishing effort into fewer accessible locations and elevating the risk of localised depletion.
‘‘This supports considering changes to the recreational allowance and management measures,’’ the report said.
Recreational settings have not been reviewed since the 1980s, despite significant reductions to the TACC.
At 10 blackfoot and 10 yellowfoot pāua per person per day, the daily limit was significantly higher than elsewhere in New Zealand, the report said.
Based on analysis of recreational fisher bag frequencies most fishers — 69-77% — took 10 pāua. Reducing the daily limit from 10 to five pāua might reduce overall the area’s recreational catch by 42%.
Aligning the area with these settings would also leave Stewart Island/Rakiura and the West Coast as the remaining areas with a comparatively higher daily limit.
Pāua in colder southern waters generally grow to larger sizes and a higher size limit may reduce the risk of localised depletion, allow pāua more time to contribute to reproduction and maintain aggregations of mature pāua that support successful spawning.
Research said successive marine heatwaves in Southland in recent years, which were expected to continue and persist for longer in future, were having adverse impacts on fish habitat.
This included localised die-offs of bull kelp which was a key food source and habitat for pāua. There had also been sponge bleaching events in Fiordland.
Also being reviewed in inshore southern areas are leatherjacket and elephant fish.
Leatherjacket was set to have its total allowable catch increased by either 50% or 75% to 333 tonnes or 388 tonnes.
Following stakeholder concerns about the declining trend of the elephant fish fishery, the South Island’s east coast, including Otago, implemented annual catch entitlement shelving of 40% for the fishing year.
The TAC for elephant fish was at 1285 tonnes but it was proposed to go down to 609 or 428 tonnes. All feedback must be in by July 24.
