The season runs from September 1 to October 30, with Government regulations seeing all of New Zealand’s whitebait season now aligned following the phasing of changes over the last few years.
You will see some of the compliance team out and about again soon, inspecting whitebait stands throughout Southland.
The three keys things to remember about your stand are:
● Your stand needs to be well maintained and ensure your name and ID are clearly visible.
● If you plan to modify, remove or replace your stand, discuss it with Environment Southland first as you may need a new consent.
● Remember to take all of your fishing equipment out of the water at the end of the day.
Fishing of whitebait is managed by the Department of Conservation and the responsibility of huts on the riverbank lies with the Southland District Council.
Environment Southland’s jurisdiction is regulating and managing the permissions to occupy riverbanks with whitebait stands.
It’s also our responsibility to ensure the maintenance of waterways that contain the different life-stages of whitebait.
In previous years, we’ve seen really good compliance with our regulations and we want to see this good work continue.
If you notice an illegal stand or a stand that requires some work, give us a call so we can follow up and ensure any issues are addressed.
With only weeks to go until the season starts, and many whitebaiters repairing their stands so they are ready to go, it’s a good time to get up to speed on what work can be done to stands without a consent, and what kind of work requires a consent.
All of the relevant information can be found in our Whitebaiters’ Rough Guide to Environment Southland’s rules, which is on our website.
If you are looking for valuable information related to whitebaiting, like science reports or surveys about whitebait in Southland, online maps of all stands, and relevant rules and forms, our website is a great place to start.
In recent years, our compliance team has noticed whitebaiters adding plants to their stands to beautify the area. If you want to do this, use native plants. You can also see if any plants on your stand or others are a pest on the Southland Pest Hub website, or by getting in touch with our biodiversity team.
We’re here to help and if you have any questions or concerns about your whitebait stand, give us a call on 0800 76 88 45 or email service@es.govt.nz.
Have a safe and enjoyable whitebaiting season.
