The Green Party is voicing serious concerns over the Government’s proposal to charge for access to public conservation land, released today.

“Commercialising our environment risks transforming nature from being accessible to all to a privilege afforded to a select few,” says Green Party Spokesperson for Environment, Lan Pham.

“Aotearoa’s parks, forests, and wildlife are taonga—treasures—that everyone should enjoy. We should be investing in a conservation system which protects our unique natural ecosystems for generations to come.

“This proposal, however, takes us down a troubling path where access to nature and conservation are being pulled into this Government’s relentless cycle of commercialisation. We should be encouraging people to access nature, not creating barriers to block them from enjoying it.

“Instead of prioritising trickle-down tax cuts and treating our natural world as a business, the Government should prioritise investment in conservation so future generations will be able to enjoy our environment.

“Last week we learned DOC has had to resort to calling for private donations for specific causes, such as protecting rare limestone ecosystems, and the critically endangered Alborn skink and tara iti (New Zealand fairy tern). Conservation is not a charity; it is a bottom line.

“This piecemeal approach risks turning New Zealand’s conservation priorities into a pick-and-choose catalogue, dictated by private interests rather than comprehensive, government-backed stewardship.

“The Government’s proposals also include some extremely concerning suggestions for the conservation system–such as exchanging public conservation land.

“The Green Party urges the government to fully resource DOC, enabling free and equal access for all to the lands that support all of our mental and physical wellbeing,” says Lan Pham.

NOTES:

• Submissions on the Government’s proposal close on 28 Feb 2025 and the Green Party is encouraging the public to submit their thoughts.
• The Government now has a requirement for DOC to cut its ongoing baseline funding by $31.341 million annually from 2024/25—on top of a one-off cut of $8.93 million this year.

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