Scallops
The owner of a commercial fishing boat has been ordered to pay nearly $3,000 after it was spotted taking scallops from a marine reserve. Thirty-seven-year-old Takaka man Lee Francis Thompson was convicted of taking marine life for commercial purposes from a marine reserve in the Marlborough Sounds. A family reported his boat dredging scallops inside the reserve in October 2005 and the Department of Conservation used maps and photos to confirm it was out of bounds. Nelson District Court judge Tony Zohrab fined Thompson $2,000 and costs of nearly $800.