The Government is pushing on with conservation reforms in the form of the Conservation Amendment Bill that opposition warns will open up 60% of the conservation estate to sale.
This bill would (just to name a few):
Expand the types of conservation land that can be sold or swapped, i.e. remove the requirement that the land must be of “no or very low” conservation value
Rewrite DOC’s core mandate to enable the commercial exploitation of public conservation land, prioritising economic opportunities over conservation
Remove opportunities for consultation from iwi, the NZCA, Conservation Boards and the public
You can read a detailed breakdown of the changes thanks to Forest & Bird here and read our full submission that outlines our specific concerns for the outdoor community below.
Read POW’s full submission here.
These changes would threaten our Kiwi way of life, including conservation, biodiversity and climate mitigation, but also the public access we enjoy as trampers, climbers, bikers, hunters, fishers, and all types of adventurers.
If you’ve only got 20 seconds you can sign the Greenpeace petition here, but more importantly we urge you to take 5-10 minutes to make a submission directly to government below.
To make doing so easy, you can follow our simple submission template here.
Submissions close Thursday, July 2, 2026.
Images thanks to Forest & Bird.
