The value of freshwater angling: Assessing the economic contribution and wellbeing benefits of recreational angling in New Zealand

The New Zealand Fish and Game Council commissioned NZIER to estimate the economic contribution of recreational freshwater angling and assess the wider wellbeing benefits people receive from their angling activity. 

We estimated economic contributions of recreational freshwater angling activity by combining trip-related expenditure by domestic and international Fish and Game licence holders with the volume of angler days provided in the 2014/15 and 2021/22 NASs. It is important to note that the volume of angling activity is only for Fish and Game licence holders and excludes angling activity in the Taupō region, which the Department of Conservation manages. Marine recreational fishing is also excluded from our analysis.

We then use the Treasury’s Living Standards Framework (LSF) to perform a desktop-based assessment of the wider wellbeing benefits associated with freshwater angling. To do this, we draw on the available literature and assign each impact to the wellbeing domains within the first level of the LSF, which captures aspects of both individual and collective wellbeing.