Hunters versus DoC In Court.
The hunters of New Zealand have just spent a day in court trying to get the Department of Conservation to consult with
them! "A really simple requirement of the Wild Animal Control Act but ignored by DoC." says Alan Simmons Co Leader of
the NZ Outdoors Party. "It is a complete disgrace that hunters have had to raise tens of thousands of dollars for a
court case to get a government department to follow the law. Worse still is that public money is being used to defend
the Department's actions against the people it is supposed to serve."
In contravention of Section 23 (c) of the Wild Animal Control Act, which obliges DoC to consult with recreational
hunters on such issues, DoC made a unilateral decision in 2014 to consult only with the commercial helicopter operators
and processors giving them open slather on the deer in the Ruahine Forest Park, including the Taurarua and Rimutuka
mountains. Hunters are trying to show that the agreement DoC made with these commercial operators was significant and
adversely affected New Zealand recreational hunters role in wild animal control. "DoC seem to have lost all touch with
the very people they are supposed to be managing the land for." Said Alan Simmons.
A positive result from this court case could have far reaching effects on how DoC treats recreational hunters in the
future.
Concerns of hunters were initially raised last year in a meeting between the Lower North Island Red Deer Foundation, the
Associate Minister of Conservation and DoC, nevertheless, the Department proceeded to remove prior restrictions on
commercial helicopter deer operations across substantial areas of the Lower North Island public conservation estate,
despite repeated calls for consultation from the LNIRDF, NZ Deerstalkers, the Game Animal Council (GAC) and the wider
hunting public.
"In this instance DoC refused to engage with hunters and statutory bodies such as the Game Animal Council and rather
pandered to commercial interests despite the absence of any scientific data supporting a need for such mass deer
culling. In the absence of proper DoC funding it appears that the commercial imperative is pushing DoC to favour private
enterprise's needs over those of who use and own the estate - the public." A new funding mechanism for DoC is urgently
needed such as the Outdoors Party tourist conservation levy." Alan Simmons said.
The Outdoors Party congratulate the Lower North Island Red Deer Foundation for raising the money and pursuing this to
court against considerable odds. We also wish to see the Game Animal Council elevated from a consultative body only to
one which is elected by the hunting community and has full responsibility for managing our national game animal herds.
END