Submission to the Acland Walking Access Consultation Panel
Council of Outdoor RecreationAssociations of NZ Inc
28 July 2006
Appendix 1
Public Access Enhancement Fund
There is no national fund available to assist improve public access. One can compare this with the Forest Heritage Fund, which was set up as a land purchase fund to protect native forest remnants. This was found so effective for protecting biodiversity that it was enlarged to the Nature Heritage Fund, and so able to purchase wetlands, tussocklands, sand dune ecosystems etc.
However, there is no Fund available to purchase land for its access value, or for that matter for its recreational, open space, scenic, amenity or landscape value. Public access is equally as important in terms of public enjoyment of land and water eg for recreation, amenity as is biodiversity. It was New Zealand’s dramatic natural scenery that was the drawcard for setting up wildland national and conservation parks, and reserves, far more than protection of indigenous biodiversity.
Because DOC has become a nature preservation agency, rather than a balanced recreational and conservation agency, no such access/recreation/amenity/scenic/landscape purchase fund, matching the Nature Heritage Fund, exists.
A Fund, specifically to facilitate public access, including by means other than by land/corridor/easement purchase, is badly needed. It would give a lubricant to assist catalyse a number of public access solutions.
A Fund for important recreation, amenity, scenery and landscape protection and access is also needed, but not part of this exercise.
The Public Access Commissioner (PAC) should have a Public Access Facilitation Fund, which among other things, can be used for negotiated new access provision. This for instance should be mostly available for the poorer rural local bodies, or for specific negotiations the Commissioner feels he needs to undertake directly.
The Fund should also be available to assist improve public access in any other ways apart from buying access. For example, erecting access signs, showing public access on paper maps, assisting mark or clear or improve access routes eg unformed public roads etc.
The annual amount needed for this fund is unclear. CORANZ proposes an initial figure of $10 million annually be available for all the PAC’s facilitation of access including new access.
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