Waikato conservation land at centre of Bill battle

Monday, 13 July 2026

Forest & Bird’s Elvisa Van der Leden, left, and Conservation Minister Tama Potaka debate the pros and cons of the Conservation Amendment Bill. (Composite picture)

A proposed shake-up of the country’s conservation laws will open up the Waikato region to unwanted and unneeded developments on public conservation land says Forest & Bird.

But Conservation Minister and Hamilton West MP Tama Potaka says the reforms will protect natural places while cutting unnecessary bureaucracy, improving visitor experiences, and supporting regional communities.

Forest & Bird’s Taranaki and Waikato regional conservation manager Elvisa van der Leden, who is also a South Waikato District councillor, says the Conservation Amendment Bill risks weakening a principle that has guided decisions for nearly 40 years - that “nature comes first”.

Exploration drilling at OceanaGold's gold mine at Waihi.

Public submissions on the Conservation Amendment Bill close at midday on Monday July 13.

The Bill is now back before the Environment Select Committee after Potaka withdrew explicit provisions allowing for the sale and exchange of conservation land, but van der Leden says the most significant change for the Waikato is a new requirement for the Department of Conservation (DOC) to actively enable economic use and development of conservation land “to the greatest extent practicable”.

She says that would shift the balance in conservation decision-making.

Waikato Forest & Bird’s Elvisa Van der Leden says time is running out for submissions to the Conservation Amendment Bill.

“Under the current Conservation Act 1987, economic considerations have no formal weight when DOC assesses activities on public conservation land,” she said.

“The Bill flips this”, she said, “meaning economic development would become a core function alongside conservation”.

Van der Leden says critics, including Forest & Bird and Federated Mountain Clubs, have warned the change could make it “almost impossible” for DOC or the Minister to decline a development proposal because the law itself would be working against refusal.

Van der Leden says access to conservation land for hunters, trampers, and anglers could be restricted by future developments in DOC reserves.

She is also concerned the Bill would reduce the role of the New Zealand Conservation Authority and regional conservation boards by shifting oversight towards the Minister.

The stakes, she says, are high because the proposed economic development function would apply across the conservation estate, including national parks such as Tongariro.

Van der Leden says places such as the Kaimai-Mamaku Forest Park could face development pressure without land changing hands.

Conservation Minister Tama Potaka says the Conservation Act 1987 is ‘often slow, inconsistent and weighed down by unnecessary red and green tape’.

“It only requires a proposal that clears a lower, development-friendly bar.”

She said community biodiversity work could be compromised, depending on the type of development allowed.

Her concerns focus partly on what she says is missing from the Bill, and that “development” is not defined, and nor is “infrastructure”, meaning the same test could potentially apply to anything from a car park upgrade to a large industrial site.

She said public access is also at risk because the Bill does not require decision makers to weigh how increased commercial or industrial activity could affect trampers, hunters, and communities who use conservation areas freely.

Van der Leden said existing projects such as the Katikati Quarry expansion, near the Waikato-Bay of Plenty boundary, which seeks to roughly double its footprint on Crown land within Kaimai Forest Park from around 20 to 40 hectares, and Oceana Gold’s Waihi North gold mining project, approved to build a 7km tunnel under public conservation land in the Coromandel Forest Park were concerning examples.

“These projects show what ‘enabling economic use and development’ already looks like in practice on Waikato conservation land, even before the Conservation Amendment Bill’s changes take effect,” she said.

Potaka rejects the idea that reforms put the region’s natural places at risk.

“Waikato families are incredibly proud of the natural places that make this region special,” he said.

“Whether it’s a weekend in the Kaimai-Mamaku ranges, walking through Pureora Forest, or exploring our walking and cycling trails these places deserve to be protected and enjoyed for generations to come, and will be.”

He says the current Act is “often slow, inconsistent and weighed down by unnecessary red and green tape”.

A new National Conservation Policy Statement would set clear national priorities, while conservation area plans would give local DOC teams more flexibility to focus on regional needs, Potaka said.

“Instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, local priorities can be better reflected while still protecting the natural places New Zealanders value.”

Potaka says the Government wants nature to thrive while giving people more opportunities to enjoy conservation areas, and that public conservation land supports jobs in tourism, recreation, hospitality and conservation.

“Every visitor who stops for a coffee in Putāruru, stays the night in Te Kūiti, fills up in Tīrau or books a local guide supports jobs in our communities,” he says.

Potaka said the Bill is about giving DOC better tools to maintain, improve and grow access while protecting the natural environment.