Rodney Hide: One job ad

The Department of Conservation is hiring a Principal Iwi Strategy and Partnerships Advisor.

https://nz.seek.com/job/94787886?type=standard&ref=search-standalone#sol=5dd0cb1365ceb02fd37ba1f0b885ce8dc67fed3c

Wellington. Permanent. $110,033 to $145,000.

The ad does not whisper. It shouts.

Lindsay Mitchell: A clash of rights and what follows

New Zealand is fast-approaching the mid-point of its annual whitebait season.

The Department of Conservation describes whitebait as a "precious taonga":

"Four of the six New Zealand whitebait species are classified as at risk or threatened. Whitebait fishing regulations were revised in 2021 to improve the sustainability of the species. "

Spaniard: Yellow-eyed penguins on Ngāi Tahu’s menu

Ngāi Tahu killing and consuming endangered yellow-eyed penguins is now okay in the eyes of the Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust. It’s also okay, apparently, with the Department of Conservation. Treaty religiosity drives the organisations’ extraordinary loss of compass.

In a DOC-published recovery plan, Te KawekaTakohaka mõ te Hoiho 2019-2029, created by ‘partners’ including Ngāi Tahu, the Trust, and DOC, the tribe cites its former consumption of yellow-eyed penguins and its interest in returning to the practices it says are “responsibilities as kaitiaki”, with no demur from those partners.

Andi Cocroft: Molesworth Belongs to New Zealand

The Department of Conservation has selected Ngāi Tahu Farming as its preferred operator for Molesworth Station, ending a competitive process that attracted five bids. The decision has inevitably generated discussion, particularly following the disappointment expressed by former manager Jim Ward, whose proposal centred on creating “a station for the nation” through a charitable trust. While attention has naturally focused on who won the concession, the more important question is what New Zealand should expect from whoever manages one of the country’s most iconic landscapes.

Bob Edlin: DoC’s lax partnership with Far North iwi.....

How taxpayers have been short-changed by DoC’s lax partnership with Far North iwi

It looks like DoC has fallen down on the job of looking after its straitened finances.

RNZ has reported on the financial consequences of te department’s failure to properly oversee the management of three Far North campgrounds for many years.

Geoff Parker: Marine Reserves Or Co-Governance By Stealth?

This week we were told to celebrate the launch of five new marine reserves along the Otago and South Canterbury coastline.

Protecting marine environments is a worthwhile goal. Most New Zealanders support conservation, sustainable fisheries, and preserving unique ecosystems for future generations.

But buried beneath the environmental language is something else entirely: another example of race-based governance quietly becoming embedded in New Zealand's public institutions.

Pee Kay: We are, truly, a nation divided!

In late October last year I posted an article about Northland iwi, Ngatiwai, landing on one of the strictly protected Poor Knights Islands, raising a flag and concreting in a carved pou in protest at the amendment to the Marine and Coastal Area Act.

David Farrar: Well done DOC

The Taxpayers’ Union released:

The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union can reveal that the Department of Conservation’s “Always Be Naturing” campaign, which will cost $2.07 million, is projected to bring in revenue and savings of $16.4 million through private-sector partnerships, donations, and value-in-kind support over the campaigns three year timeframe. …

Pee Kay: DOC’s OIA Response

In late October I posted an article about Northland iwi, Ngatiwai, landing on one of the strictly protected Poor Knights Islands, raising a flag and concreting in a carved pou in protest at the amendment to the Marine and Coastal Area Act.

Click to view

Bob Edlin: DOC, a fire-ravaged national park and the healing powers of rahui....

DOC, a fire-ravaged national park and the healing powers of rahui – but who decides we need 10 years of such healing?

PoO today was minded to check out a bit of conservation legislation and wonder why it is not likely to be as effective as a rahui.

Chris Lynch: Paid parking coming to West Coast hotspots in Summer trial

The Department of Conservation has confirmed the pricing for paid car parking at popular West Coast sites as part of a summer pilot program.

The car parks at Dolomite Point in Punakaiki and Franz Josef will introduce fees starting in December 2025.

John McLean: Yet Another Perfectly Innocent Mistake......(Not)

NZ's Department of Conservation pleads guilty to a lesser crime

On 5 June 2025, the Department of Conservation (DoC) declined a mining company’s application for a resource consent to expand an existing gold mining operation - by a moderate 6 hectares.

The company is OceanaGold. The mine is Macraes mine near Dunedin. Macraes, which opened in 1990, is New Zealand’s largest gold mine.