Bottom trawling summary facts
- Around 30% of New Zealand’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is closed to bottom trawling. Trawling of all types is prohibited in about 21% of the territorial sea.
- The trawl footprint (the total area trawled in a given year) has been declining over time. In 2019, it was 81,054 square kilometres.
- The total area trawled from 1990 to 2019 is 460,627 square kilometres, or about 11% of New Zealand’s EEZ and territorial seas.
- In the 2020/2021 fishing year, 68% of all fish caught commercially in New Zealand were caught using either bottom trawl gear or mid-water trawl gear within 1 metre of the seabed.