In a departure from the proposals put to public consultation, the newly unveiled Conservation Amendment Bill rewrites the Department of Conservation’s statutory functions to require it to “recognise the economic opportunities” arising from conservation land and enable development “to the greatest extent practicable”.
WWF-New Zealand’s spokesperson Caitlin Owers says this amounts to a dramatic ideological shift away from conservation and toward commercial exploitation of public land.
“When over 4,000 of our native species are on the brink of extinction, we can’t afford to further shift the balance towards extraction and exploitation.
“Public conservation land exists to enable the ongoing survival of our threatened native species and ecosystems, but this Government appears determined to squeeze whatever economic value it can from it, at the expense of the natural world we all depend on.
“It’s dressing this up as efficiency and streamlining, but the direction of travel is clear: fewer safeguards, more development, and weaker protections for our environment. These aren’t sensible and necessary reforms – they are an attack on nature in Aotearoa.
“As we celebrate Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday today, it’s hard to imagine a starker contrast with the values he’s spent a lifetime championing.”
WWF is also warning against proposed changes that would make it easier for the Government to exchange and dispose of conservation land.
“These are public lands that belong to all New Zealanders and are supposed to be protected for future generations, not traded under a vague ‘net conservation benefit’ test,” says Owers.
WWF-New Zealand says the Bill centralises power with Ministers, weakens the role of independent conservation bodies, and reduces opportunities for public scrutiny and participation.
“These are decisions about irreplaceable ecosystems, endangered species, and some of Aotearoa’s most treasured wild places – and we’re handing over more power to a Conservation Minister who’s said some species will have to go extinct because it’s too expensive to save them all.”
WWF points to its Nature Positive Aotearoa report, which shows that investing in protecting and restoring nature would generate $270 billion for New Zealand over the next 50 years.
“The answer to sustainable development in Aotearoa lies in greater investment in nature – not rewriting our laws to make it easier to commercialise and exploit public conservation for extractive, short-term gain.”