22/06/2026
The Government's latest assault on nature is the Conservation Amendment Bill due to be debated in New Zealand Parliament today. The bill treats our common heritage - public conservation land - as "government" land - able to be developed and disposed of, as the Minister and DoC choose. It allows conservation lands to be sold off unless the land is important for threatened species or ecosystems and the habitat it provides is one of the best examples of its type. Only 40% of the conservation estate (areas such as national parks) will be off-limits to sale and disposal.
The bill gives DoC a new function, requiring it to recognise the economic opportunities from use and development of land and other natural resources and enable this to the "greatest extent practicable". This is an open invitation to miners, agribusiness, corporate tourism, irrigation and energy interests to plunder nature by siting their commercial operations and buildings on public land.
Commercial tourism is encouraged in national parks and elsewhere by allowing more "amenities areas" with minimal controls on development, and by removing the preference for recreation over tourism in the current Act's list of DoC's functions.
The bill increases Ministerial powers and removes the decision- making roles of conservation boards and the NZ Conservation Authority. They have ensured that public and iwi voices have been represented in management planning and decisions on concessions.
The Act's requirement to recognise and provide for the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi remains. There are new provisions around how this is to be implemented which potentially prevent the use of the partnership principle and restrict iwi and hapū to just being consulted.
The Minister's language of "modernising" the law seeks to disguise the bill's dismantling of longstanding safeguards for nature and our protected lands. We need to fight back and stand up for these precious places.
