20 December 2024
L Rhodes
[FYI request #29416 email]
Tēnā koe L Rhodes
Thank you for your request to the Department of Conservation, received on 3 December
2024, in which you asked:
1. What systems or processes the Department has in place to maintain records of
conservation area closures made under section 13 of the Conservation Act 1987
2. What methods or channels the Department uses to inform the public about
conservation area closures, both:
a) For planned closures
b) For emergency closures
3. Any internal policies, guidelines, or procedures that outline how the Department
meets its obligation under section 13(2) to "take all reasonable steps to ensure that
members of the public are made aware of the closure and the reasons for it"
4. Details of any publicly accessible database, website, or other system where
members of the public can check the current status of conservation area closures
5. If no public list exists, I request:
a) A list of all conservation areas currently closed under section 13
b) A list of all conservation areas that were closed under section 13 in the past 24
months, including the duration and reason for each closure
We have considered your request under the Official Information Act 1982. Your questions
and our responses are listed below:
1. What systems or processes the Department has in place to maintain records of
conservation area closures made under section 13 of the Conservation Act 1987
The Department has a set process to assess and notify the closure of all conservation
managed lands, outlined in the
Closures of tracks and areas of PCL&W for visitor safety
Standard Operating Procedure. This document is attached as Item 1 and listed in the
table below. This process includes a form that records decisions. The Department’s
visitor safety team receives the forms and undertakes periodic quality assurance. The
procedure was updated recently and a spreadsheet to record decisions wil be completed
in early 2025, with periodic quality assurance checks undertaken.
2. What methods or channels the Department uses to inform the public about
conservation area closures, both:
a.
For planned closures.
b. For emergency closures
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The process and the channels to be used for public notification of closures is included in
the operating procedure.
3. Any internal policies, guidelines, or procedures that outline how the Department
meets its obligation under section 13(2) to "take all reasonable steps to ensure that
members of the public are made aware of the closure and the reasons for it"
The ‘
Closures of tracks and areas of PCL&W for visitor safety Standard Operating
Procedure’ and ‘
Visitor safety closures assessment form,’ listed as Item 2, are attached.
These documents are used together to guide the process for public notification of
closures.
4. Details of any publicly accessible database, website, or other system where
members of the public can check the current status of conservation area closures
5. If no public list exists, I request:
a.
A list of al conservation areas currently closed under section 13
b. A list of al conservation areas that were closed under section 13 in the
past 24 months, including the duration and reason for each closure
The DOC website has pages showing the alerts, including closures for each region. You
can find this via the link:
http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/know-before-you-
go/alerts/ People can also check whether a track is open by visiting the DOC website
page for that track or talking to the local Visitor Centre or the DOC call centre.
The two documents released are:
Item Date
Document description
Decision
1
3 July 2023 Closures of tracks and areas of PCL&W for
Released in full
visitor safety Standard Operating Procedure
2
3 July 2023 Visitor Safety Closure Assessment Form
Released in full
Please note that this letter (with your personal details removed) and attached documents
may be published on the Department’s website.
If you would like to discuss this response with us, please contact Andy Roberts, Manager
Standards & Visitor Safety by email to [email address].
Nāku noa, nā
Catherine Wilson
Director, Heritage and Visitors
Department of Conservation
Te Papa Atawhai
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