The only specialised marine publication in Oceania that focuses on the maritime industry, from super yachts to small craft to large commercial ships, including coastal shipping, tugs, tow boats, barges, ferries, tourist, sport-fishing craft
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WATERFRONT BUSINESS In brief… Navico distributes direct Navico officially assumed direct distribution for Lowrance on April 1 and Simrad and B&G on May 1. Producer of recreational marine electronics, Navico, has announced changes in the strategy of their New Zealand distributors. The current distributors for the brands, Electronic Navigation (Lowrance) and Advance Trident (Simrad and B&G) will continue as Authorised Resellers. Bay of Islands – New Hydrographic Survey Discovery Marine Limited will provide the results of a hydrographic survey of the Bay of Islands, New Zealand in June this year. The last major surveys of the area, to International Hydrographic Organisation standards, were undertaken in 1955 and 1992. The survey area primarily consists of the coastline and near shore area of the Bay of Islands between Russell and Opua. The multibeam hydrographic survey will have a particular emphasis on accurately locating and identifying shoals, reefs and potential dangers to navigation. The area is growing in popularity with an ever increasing numbers of cruise ship visits, tourism operators and high numbers of recreational craft. Tenders for Tokelau The tender for South Pacific coral atoll islands of Tokelau's long awaited new vessel has been released. A marine engineering company was appointed by the New Zealand Government to design a concept based on the information gathered during a workshop held with representatives from the villages last December. Tokelau's new vessel will be 40-50m long, have seating capacity for 60 people and a speed limited to only 12 knots. The new shipping vessel is part of the Total Transport Solution Project under the Tokelau National Strategic Plan development goals. The Total Transport Solution includes inter island transport between the islands and development of a safe ship to shore solution. Sea-Tow Pacific Basin Matua is currently operating as the transportation for Tokelau to and from Apia route. The tender looks to a two-year time frame to complete the project and applications for will close on April 7. 46 Professional Skipper May/June 2013 DOC cutbacks place native species at risk GOVERNMENT SPENDING CUTS place New Zealand's clean green brand at risk, says independent conservation organisation Forest & Bird. The Department of Conservation plans to replace frontline staff with volunteers will impact on the wildlife and landscapes under DOC's protection. The department will announce another round of redundancies this month and the cuts are expected to be significant, following several consecutive years of layoffs. Last year about 120 jobs were lost. "The government is putting huge pressure on DOC to cut costs. Forest & Bird is very concerned that the department's response to those cuts will significantly undermine both its professional capacity and its ability to deliver good conservation management," said Forest & Bird Advocacy Manager Kevin Hackwell. "DOC plays a crucial role in protecting New Zealand's clean green brand. That brand is worth billions to this country through the sale of everything from holidays to wine, food and clothing. And DOC has a legislative duty to protect for the future the native plants and animals that are found only in New Zealand." DOC's operating budget for the last financial year was $335 million – $25 million less than in 2008. "The price of constantly undermining DOC will be high indeed for our native plants and animals," Hackwell said. LONGFIN TAONGA MANAAKI TUNA, A group for the protection of longfin eel, says the eels are headed for extinction unless a there is a moratorium on commercial harvest of the species. Decades of commercial exploitation, habitat loss and declining water quality have put longfin eels, or tuna populations in a tenuous position. The Maanaki Tuna petition, delivered by the Travelling Tuna Tapestry was organised by Stephanie Bowman, asks that the House urgently place a moratorium on commercial fishing of longfin eel until it can be clearly shown that such fishing is sustainable. The petition was signed by 4417 people, with a further 2349 signing an online version. Member of Parilament Rino Tirikatene of Te Tai Tonga, said tuna are a taonga to Maori, with hapu and iwi playing a leading role in the campaign to save the eels. David Cunliffe, Labour's Fisheries spokesperson said sustainable management based on good science has the potential to be a win-win for eels and the economy. "The eel fishery is only 82 tonnes, which is down a whopping 96 percent since the 1960s. We urgently need to replenish eel stocks while recasting sustainable New Zealand eel as the ultra-premium option in traditional European and new Asian markets," said Cunliffe. Callaghan Innovation New CEO CALLAGHAN INNOVATION the ANNOUNCES appointment of Dr Mary Quin, as the inaugural CEO of Callaghan Innovation. Quin is a New Zealander with an impressive track record of working in the United States engineering and technology sector – as well as being an international bestselling Dr Mary Quin author of a book drawing on her personal experience of being kidnapped as part of a small tour group in Yemen. "I am delighted to be joining not only the talented research, engineering and investment teams already at Callaghan Innovation but also New Zealand's network of businesses, investors, and educational, research and government institutions," says Quin. Quin will relocate from Anchorage, Alaska and will be based in Wellington but will spend a significant amount of her time working in Auckland. She begins her new role as CEO of Callaghan Innovation on May 3, 2013.