Quick Dips

Clams Away

Surf clams are expected to become a popular seafood delicacy as a result of research by Victoria University's Coastal Marine Research Unit. The research has been done to assess the viability of clam harvesting on the Manawatu Coast by local iwi.

"Surf clams are [a] species similar to the common tuatua," says unit head Dr Bob Wear. "At low tide the clams are under one to nine metres of water, and up to 20 centimetres under the sand, so they have not been exploited for food till now."

Wear sees good potential in using a hydraulic dredge to blast water under high pressure into the sand, picking up the clams in the resulting slurry. This approach has much the same effects as waves breaking, and so would produce little environmental damage.

Commercial development of the clam harvesting area would be under the control of local Maori, and is seen as a means of providing employment opportunities in the area.