National parks of New Zealand

The National Parks Act of 1980 was established in order to codify the purpose, governance and selection of national parks. It begins by establishing the definition of a national park: The National Parks Act goes on to state that the public will have freedom of entry and access to the parks, though this is subject to restrictions to ensure the preservation of native plants and animals and the welfare of the parks in general. Access to specially protected areas (550 km2) constituted under the act is by permit only. Under the Act, national parks are to be maintained in their natural state as far as possible to retain their value as soil, water and forest conservation areas. Native plants and animals are to be preserved and introduced plants and animals removed if their presence interferes with the natural wildlife. Development in wilderness areas established under the act is restricted to foot tracks and huts used for wild animal control or scientific research. Services available for public use The National Parks Act allows the Department of Conservation to provide hostels, huts, camping grounds, ski tows and similar facilities, parking areas, roading and tracks within the parks. In addition to these, the department also provides some accommodation, transport and other services at entry points to the parks, but these are also offered by other government agencies, voluntary organisations and private firms. More comprehensive services within the parks, such as guided walks and skiing tutorials, are privately provided with concessions from the department. 2018 Supreme Court decision In 2018, the Auckland iwi Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki won a case in the Supreme Court, allowing them to apply to the Department of Conservation for exclusive rights for concessions to run commercial operations on Motutapu and Rangitoto islands. The court decision was based on giving effect to principles within the Treaty of Waitangi and recognition that although the islands are administered by the Department of Conservation, Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki has traditional ownership (mana whenua). This decision had implications for the Department of Conservation management plans for the conservation estate, including the National Parks, and led to a pause in the review of the management plans for Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park and Westland Tai Poutini National Park. ==List of national parks==

This table lists the current and former national parks in alphabetical order. == Timeline ==

Define $dx = 25 # shift text to right side of bar Define $dy = -3 # shift text to right side of bar ImageSize = width:250 height:550 PlotArea = width: 25 height:530 left:50 bottom:10 DateFormat = yyyy Define $start = 1880 Define $now = 2024 Period = from:1880 till:2024 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:10 start:1880 PlotData= bar:Leaders color:green width:25 mark:(line,white) align:left fontsize:S from:$start till:$now from:1887 till:1887 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Tongariro National Park from:1900 till:1900 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Egmont National Park from:1929 till:1929 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Arthur's Pass National Park from:1942 till:1942 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Abel Tasman National Park from:1952 till:1952 shift:($dx,-8) fontsize:S text:Fiordland National Park from:1953 till:1953 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park from:1955 till:1955 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Te Urewera National Park from:1957 till:1957 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Nelson Lakes National Park from:1960 till:1960 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Westland Tai Poutini National Park from:1964 till:1964 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Mount Aspring National Park from:1986 till:1986 shift:($dx,-8) fontsize:S text:Whanganui National Park from:1987 till:1987 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Paparoa National Park from:1996 till:1996 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Kahurangi National Park from:2002 till:2002 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Rakiura National Park from:2014 till:2014 shift:($dx,$dy) fontsize:S text:Te Urewera disestablished ==Proposed national parks==

The area centred on Waipoua Forest, north of Dargaville, has been proposed as a possible Kauri National Park. The area contains most of New Zealand's remaining kauri, including the largest known kauri, Tāne Mahuta. These stands of kauri are also valuable as havens for endangered species including the North Island brown kiwi. This proposal is currently being investigated by the Department of Conservation. In response to a DoC proposal to upgrade the protection of Great Barrier Island (Aotea), Forest and Bird launched a campaign in 2014 to designate it as a National Park. In 2020, the New Zealand National Party announced that they would create two new national parks if elected at the general election, namely Coromandel National Park and Catlins National Park. ==Mining concerns==

In 2010 the New Zealand Government proposed removing some national park and conservation areas from Schedule 4 protection of the Crown Minerals Act which prohibits mining in those areas. In July the government abandoned the proposal after receiving a large number of submissions, most of which opposed mining. ==See also==