Last month, the NZ Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) final report to the Hauraki Gulf Forum was released. It states that the value of the Hauraki Gulf’s ecosystem services and natural capital is estimated to be more than $5 billion dollars each year, taking into account its commercial, cultural, social and recreational value.

This latest report Exotic Caulerpa and the Hauraki Gulf: Assessing the ecosystem services at risk looks at how a widespread, uncontrolled invasion of exotic caulerpa will impact that value. The quantifiable impact of exotic caulerpa is estimated to cost up to $109 million on commercial and recreational fishing, with a cost of up to $45 million on our biodiversity.

Forum Co-Chair Nicola MacDonald, who also co-chairs the Exotic Caulerpa National Advisory Group, welcomes the Government’s recent announcement of a $10 million funding boost to further develop tools and techniques to tackle exotic caulerpa.

“Among the challenges facing the Hauraki Gulf, the spread of the invasive exotic caulerpa is the greatest threat facing our marine ecosystem, smothering vital marine habitats, threatening the biodiversity and fisheries of the Gulf. Working together, we can arrest the spread of exotic caulerpa and protect the Gulf from future incursions,” she said.

While the spreading of exotic caulerpa across the Gulf is the most immediate and pressing issue for the Gulf at the moment, climate change, marine heatwaves, acidifying waters and more frequent storms all pose serious natural threats to the Gulf; and our human impacts of decades of destructive fishing practices, land-based runoffs and population growth have consistently degraded the Gulf. The Gulf is in dire need of protection and restoration, with eradicating Caulerpa needing our immediate attention.

More information on the forum and the marine park: www.gulfjournal.org.nz

Image: Auckland Council