US Court finds NZ protection for Māui and Hector’s dolphins insufficient

A US Court has ruled that New Zealand fish exports fail to meet the United States Marine Mammal Protection Act – because New Zealand is not sufficiently protecting the critically endangered Māui dolphins from fishing related-deaths. 

The United States Court of International Trade reviewed whether New Zealand had sufficient regulation in place to limit the killing or serious injury of marine mammals to near zero. By the New Zealand government’s own admission, it does not.  

Christine Rose of Māui and Hector’s Dolphin Defenders, who filed the case, said “The U.S. now has to do what the New Zealand Government has failed to do – keep Māui and Hector’s dolphins in the west coast North Island safe from indiscriminate fishing, which is otherwise pushing the dolphins to extinction. It’s now New Zealand’s turn to protect the whole dolphin habitat in its own laws.” 

In a separate case, ELI is challenging the lawfulness of the Hector’s and Māui Dolphin Threat Management Plan, which was put in place in 2020. ELI alleges the threat management plan fails to protect the dolphins adequately from fishing-related deaths. As Dr Matt Hall, ELI’s Director Legal and Research, says, “there are areas where we know Māui dolphins travel to, but there is no mortality limit in place.” 

“Because there are so few Māui dolphins left, even one death is considered a catastrophic event to the population viability. They need intensive conservation effort to prevent their extinction,” says Hall.  

Hall says that a credible Threat Management Plan must effectively restore Māui and Hector's populations so that they are no longer threatened. The hearing date is yet to be set by the High Court.