After a public outcry, the government is imposing a two-year ban on taking shellfish from rockpools north of Auckland - the minister in charge placing the blame on migrant communities.

The ban is for all of the Whangaparāoa Peninsula, and further north at Kawau Bay and Ōmaha Bay.

Locals have said more people are taking sea life and beaches were being stripped bare.

Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones said on Sunday most people did the right thing "and gather only what is appropriate and legal", but others were exploiting and collapsing ecosystems.

The ban will take effect from 12 March and will be enforced by fishery officers.

Oceans and Fisheries Under-Secretary Jenny Marcroft said officials "have been directed to explore how community volunteers can be supported to encourage visitors to do the right thing".

"Fisheries New Zealand will also develop multilingual educational material to support this closure and the ongoing management of intertidal fisheries."

Last year, the Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust applied for a two-year legal ban on harvesting all shellfish and seaweed from rock pools along Auckland's eastern coastline, from the Rodney local board area through to the Hibiscus and Bays local board area, under section 186A of the Fisheries Act.

The government in January said it was seeking urgent advice on the matter.

Fisheries worked with the Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust, Jones said, to enact a traditional rāhui.

"My decision excludes some of the species and areas requested by Ngāti Manuhiri where existing closures and restrictions apply."

All seaweed, invertebrate and shellfish were covered, he said, as well as sponges, starfish, anemone and sea cucumbers.

Spiny rock lobster and scallops were already covered by existing closures.

Sea urchin (kina) were excluded "and can still be taken within the current recreational fishing limits".

"I decided to allow kina to continue to be taken as managing kina barrens is a priority for me. Officials will continue to actively monitor and manage kina population."

The closure did not apply to any aquaculture activities such as marine farming or the collection of spat (small juvenile shellfish), Jones and Marcroft said.

"It's important that these coastal management restrictions do not impact on marine farming and the aquaculture development so it can continue to support our economy and provide jobs in our communities," Jones said.

More details were posted on the Ministry for Primary Industries website.

'Long overdue'

The Protect Whangaparāoa Rockpools group said the government's move was a long overdue but welcome development.

The closures gave good protection for areas that had been "decimated for decades", spokesman Mark Lenton said.

"It sends a really clear message that this type of behaviour is not tolerated in New Zealand and hopefully sets a blueprint for the rest of the country for other areas that are similarly impacted."

He said in recent years each and every type of marine life - both plant and animal - had been taken for food.

"So whether it's seaweed or crabs or limpets or starfish, they get scraped out of the pools and put into soups and turned to fish stock," he said.

"Such that every pool across Army Bay now and around Whangaparāoa is simply empty, they only contain seawater."

Lenton said it was 15 months ago when he made his first call to the Ministry for Primary Industries.

"That was the day I looked around and I counted over 200 people with chisels and piano wire and hammers just decimating the intertidal zone."

Lenton said the ban was a great step but would be a challenge "operationally and logistically".

He said officials would have to rely on the support of locals for the closures to succeed in any way.

The Hauraki Gulf Forum also welcomed the closures.

'Stick to Peking Duck': Fisheries minister blames Chinese communities

Jones said he was acting after "things got very heated".

"The local community felt that their space was being degraded by migrants who either were wilfully overdoing it or not aware of the host culture, or indeed all of the rules."

The minister also opened the door to more closures in other areas, and more often.

"Because when you change the character of your population, and let's face it, we have had enormous amounts of immigration into Auckland in the last 15 to 20 years, and they have to adapt and accept the host culture.

"When immigrants don't accept the host culture, then they're going to end up ruining areas, for example like the rockpools, and we don't want that to happen," he said.

He said the local community reported that Chinese language social media sites were organising large groups of people on buses with spades and piano wire, "so we had to intervene".

"Around Auckland there are some egregious cases of migrant communities foraging taking starfish and barnacles, things that Kiwis ordinarily don't regard as part of the daily menu.

"And look, my advice to the Chinese social media organisers of these foraging trips, stick to Peking Duck."

Jones said he was suggesting honorary fisheries officers be appointed to enforce the closure.

It would also be explored whether locals could carry out "warden-like duties" of educating people.

Jones said he liked the idea of infringement notices, but that this would require consultation and tweaking of the law.

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