Wairarapa is on track to reduce the number of fisheries prosecutions this year, with only four so far compared to 13 last year.
Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) figures show that after a leap in prosecutions in 2010 to 25 from three the year before, numbers dropped to 14 last year and look to drop further this year.
However, the number of warnings and infringement notices have have already passed 2011's numbers, with 35 by the end of October, compared to 31 for last year.
MPI compliance manager for Wairarapa and Hawke's Bay Ray McKay said there are a lot of variables to consider, including the weather and fishing conditions and the effect of compliance efforts.
Fewer prosecutions means more voluntary compliance.
"Most people these days seem to know how many paua they can take or the size.
"There are groups who don't take any measuring tools, and others who want to know everything about it. And there's others that don't care, out there doing it and most of the time selling it," Mr McKay said.
No matter how much is put into education, there will always be those who break the law.
"There's a great public awareness of the fishing rules. If they [members of the public] see illegal activity they're more likely now to go and report it."
There have been 45 prosecutions from 2009 to October, and all have been recreational fishers.
There have been no commercial prosecutions in Wairarapa for that period, though a number of warnings and infringement notices have been issued, usually for not returning catch paperwork on time. Fisheries officers operate regular patrols along the Wairarapa coast, with two full-time officers in Masterton and four Wairarapa-based volunteers.
Caught
A 42-year-old Palmerston North man was convicted in Masterton District Court on charges relating to excess and undersize paua. He had 144 paua, 143 of which were undersized. The man was sentenced to 100 hours' community service.
In July, a 56-year-old Masterton man was convicted for selling paua fritters during the Golden Shears and obstruction against fisheries officers. He was sentenced to 120 hours' community service.
A haul of 1300 paua from Wairarapa was seized at a police roadblock in February 2011, destined for the black market. The paua came from White Rock and Tora, and was found during a search in Upper Hutt.
In February 2011, fisheries officers seized shucked and mostly under-sized paua at Castlepoint, and suspected the same group were responsible for the gathering of 145 paua a few days earlier.