Source: NZ Ministry for Primary Industries
Have your say
The Roma Marae, Ahipara Marae, hapū, and community members have requested a 2-year pāua closure of this area under section 186A of the Fisheries Act 1996.
Consultation opened on 10 March and submissions close at 5pm on Friday 24 April 2026.
The proposed closure area
The proposed closure area starts near Te Huahua/Iron Gate on Tauroa Peninsula, west of Ahipara, and follows the coastline to near the Hunahuna Stream. It extends from the mean high-water mark to about 2 km offshore and covers approximately 32.4 square kilometres.
The proposed area excludes approximately 1.8 square kilometres of fishery waters at the sandy beach near Hukatere Stream.
Request for closure
Application letter [PDF, 1.7 MB]
Proposed Te Tauroa pāua closure map [PDF, 449 KB]
Related document
Pāua working roopu 2025 report [PDF, 353 KB]
Making your submission
Submissions close at 5pm on Friday 24 April 2026.
Email your submission to FMSubmissions@mpi.govt.nz
While we prefer email, you can post your submission to:
Spatial Allocations
Fisheries New Zealand
PO Box 2526
Wellington 6140.
Public notice
A public notice about the call for submissions is scheduled to appear in the Northland Age and Northern Advocate on 10 March 2026.
Related information
Section 186A of the Fisheries Act 1996 allows the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries to temporarily close an area, or temporarily restrict or prohibit the use of any fishing method in respect of an area, if satisfied that the closure, restriction, or prohibition will recognise and provide for the use and management practices of tangata whenua in the exercise of non-commercial fishing rights.
Submissions are public information
Note that all, part, or a summary of your submission may be published on this website. Most often this happens when we issue a document that reviews the submissions received.
People can also ask for copies of submissions under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). The OIA says we must make the content of submissions available unless we have good reason for withholding it. Those reasons are detailed in sections 6 and 9 of the OIA.
If you think there are grounds to withhold specific information from publication, make this clear in your submission or contact us. Reasons may include that it discloses commercially sensitive or personal information. However, any decision MPI makes to withhold details can be reviewed by the Ombudsman, who may direct us to release it.
