Photo: EnviroStrat_ Kinamonics
A project is underway to see if harmful, malnourished kina can be plucked from the seafloor and turned into a lucrative seafood export.
In parts of north east Aotearoa, wild kina populations have exploded, grazing kelp forests to bare rock, and turning seafloor into barrens. The kina don't die, but because there's little food left for them, they're not big enough to harvest and eat.
EnviroStrat is undertaking a pilot which harvests the underweight kina and feeds them in a facility, until they're big enough to export to an east Asian market. Senior environmental consultant Johnny Wright speaks to Kathryn Ryan.
