iSAYSO
Fellow trampers and campers — we need to talk about something urgent.
Fellow trampers and campers — we need to talk about something urgent.
The government has just introduced the Conservation Amendment Bill 2026, and if it passes, 60% of New Zealand’s conservation land could be sold, exchanged, or leased to private companies for up to 60 years.
Not the national parks. But everything else.
The Pinnacles in the Coromandel Forest Park. The Kaweka Forest Park in Hawke’s Bay. The Rimutaka Forest Park outside Wellington. Pureora Forest Park in the central North Island. The Richmond Forest Park in Nelson/Marlborough. Tunnel Beach Recreation Reserve in Dunedin. The Mt Somers Conservation Area and the Lewis Pass beech forests in Canterbury. Places we tramp. Places we love. Places that belong to all of us.
That’s not all. This Bill would:
• Add a legal requirement for DOC to actively enable economic development on conservation land – accommodation, restaurants, tourism operations
• Remove your right to be heard when a business applies for a concession on conservation land near you
• Centralise all decision-making in the Minister – removing independent oversight from the NZ Conservation Authority and Conservation Boards
• Allow commercial leases of up to 60 years on conservation land
This is not a drill. Once this land is gone, it is gone forever. No future government can undo it.
The select committee is accepting submissions RIGHT NOW. Deadline is 2 July 2026. That is 3 weeks away.
You don’t need to be a lawyer. You don’t need to write much. You just need to say what this land means to you and that you oppose these changes. Every single submission counts.
Submit now via the Parliament’s website. Just do a Google search for “parliament conservation act feedback link” or follow it here https://www.doc.govt.nz/…/proposals-for-new…/…Please share this with everyone you know. This is the moment to show up for the land that has always shown up for us. 