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Four ambitious conservation projects in Gisborne have received $78,000 in support from the DOC Community Fund, Conservation Ministers Maggie Barry and Nicky Wagner have announced.

The projects range from weed eradication on Gisborne’s Titirangi Maunga to protecting wild kiwi in Maungataniwha and represent the best of community conservation, the Ministers say.

“Each of the groups is helping wage the War on Weeds and protect native species from introduced predators and invasive plants,” Ms Barry says.

Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry have welcomed initiatives by the seafood industry to further protect Māui dolphins.

“There are already extensive fishing protections over a large part of the Māui dolphin distribution, and these new steps will provide even greater reassurance and protection,” says Mr Guy.

The proposed changes by Moana New Zealand and Sanford cover the area from Maunganui Bluff in the North to the Whanganui River Mouth. They include:

Volunteer work to support trampers, hunters, climbers and everyone who enjoys New Zealand’s great outdoors has received a significant grant from the DOC Community Fund, Conservation Minister Maggie Barry says.

“The Outdoor Recreation Consortium will receive $347,000 this year to assist with its work to improve, upgrade and maintain huts and tracks.”

Formed in 2014, the Consortium is a collaboration between the Federated Mountain Clubs of New Zealand, the NZ Deerstalker’s Association and Trail Fund NZ.

The release of a proposed new spatial plan for the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park has been welcomed by Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry.

The Sea Change/Tai Timu Tai Pari marine spatial plan, designed to secure a healthy, productive and sustainable future for the Hauraki Gulf, is the result of three years’ work by the Sea Change group, representing mana whenua, councils, local conservationists, businesses, recreational fishers and the Government.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry today announced that New Zealand will take on a leadership role internationally, working with others to control and eradicate invasive alien species and protect native habitats.

The Minister has made the announcement at the International Convention on Biological Diversity which is currently meeting in Cancun, Mexico to consider the best way to meets targets to reduce the impact of invasive species on global biodiversity.

A new action plan setting targets for protection of New Zealand’s unique native animals and environment has been officially released by Conservation Minister Maggie Barry.

New Zealand’s Biodiversity Action Plan 2016-2020 sets out how the country intends to turn the tide of biodiversity loss and counter threats to native species.

Ms Barry leaves for Cancun, Mexico today to attend the International Convention on Biological Diversity, where she will present the new Action Plan to a global audience.

A showcase for New Zealand’s significant places has been launched in Northland today, Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Maggie Barry says.

“Landmarks Whenua Tohunga will pick out our must-see places – connecting them together and creating a journey to some of our most important heritage sites,” Ms Barry says.

New Zealand’s Predator Free 2050 programme is at the forefront of a global effort against invasive predators, Conservation Minister Maggie Barry says.

“Today sees the launch of the Honolulu Challenge, an initiative by 33 international conservation organisations calling for urgent action to reduce the impact of invasive species on global biodiversity,” Ms Barry says.

New Zealand was one of the first members of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to commit to the Challenge at the World Congress in Hawaii in September.

The company which will be a key player in achieving New Zealand’s Predator Free 2050 ambition is now up and running, Conservation Minister Maggie Barry says.

“Today marks the official establishment of Predator Free 2050 Ltd and the appointment of a skilled board of nine directors,” Ms Barry says.

More than $1 million in new funding will be committed to the battle against the spread of wilding conifers in Queenstown and Central Otago, Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has announced.

“The landscape of Central Otago is justifiably world-famous, but it is threatened by rapidly spreading wilding conifers which cloak landscapes in trees that aren’t supposed to be there,” Ms Barry says.

“These trees suck up priceless water, smother habitat for native plants and animals, and are advancing at a rate of five per cent a year.”

A new strategy for tackling wilding conifers in the Mackenzie Basin has been announced today by Conservation Ministers Maggie Barry and Nicky Wagner.

“Currently, wilding conifers impact on almost a quarter of land in the Mackenzie Basin, and without further control they will spread and take over large areas of farm and conservation land,” Ms Barry says.

“Wilding conifers are a major threat to our ecosystems, land and farms. These invasive self-sown trees spread fast and are very hard to eliminate once established.

The invasive pest great white butterfly has been eradicated from New Zealand in a world-first achievement, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry say.

“This is the first eradication of an unwanted butterfly population in the world and is another impressive example of New Zealand’s innovation and skill in removing pests,” Ms Barry says.

Great white butterflies posed a major threat to native plant species and primary sector economy.

Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Maggie Barry will travel to Antarctica tomorrow to visit Scott Base and the historic explorer’s huts in the Ross Dependency.

Ms Barry travels as a guest of the Antarctic Heritage Trust and will be accompanied by chair Mark Stewart, executive director Nigel Watson and Paul James, chief executive of the Ministry for Culture & Heritage.

The effort to stop invasive wilding conifers from choking the Kaimanawa ranges has received a major funding boost, Land Information Minister Louise Upston and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry have announced.

“The Government is investing an additional $538,000 in control work in the Kaimanawa ranges this year, as part of the $16m it is investing nationally to control wilding conifers over the next four years,” Ms Upston says. 

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has congratulated the winners of this year’s Conservation Innovation Awards, to be presented in Wellington tonight.

An app to identify kauri dieback, a bird location drone and a water monitoring device are the latest winners of WWF-New Zealand awards, now in their third year.

“These awards celebrate exciting developments in conservation by creative people dedicated to the cause of protecting our nature,” Ms Barry says.

The fight against wilding conifers in two iconic high country areas of the South Island has received a major funding boost, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry have announced.

Work to control the spread of wildings in the Molesworth area of Marlborough and the Amuri block in North Canterbury will receive an additional $730,000 in Crown funding from Budget 2016.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry says the official launch of the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy (QCC) initiative in New Zealand adds impetus to efforts to protect the nation’s native forest.

Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy and Ms Barry celebrated the registration of the first QCC covenant established in New Zealand at Mt Lyford Lodge in Canterbury today.

In partnership with the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust, farmers Sue and Peter Turnbull have covenanted 392 hectares of high-value land at Mt Terako, in the Seaward Kaikoura range.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has welcomed the second reading of a bill to modernise and strengthen DOC rangers’ ability to protect native wildlife from poaching and smuggling.

The Wildlife (Powers) Amendment Bill passed its second reading in Parliament this morning.

Two community trusts working to protect Great Barrier Island’s nature from predators and weeds have received a $108,000 funding boost, Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has announced.

On a visit to the Glenfern Sanctuary on the island today Ms Barry announced the Kotuku Peninsula and Windy Hill Rosalie Bay Catchment Trusts will be the first groups to benefit from this year’s $4.5 million round of DOC Community Fund grants.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has officially opened the new DOC base on Great Barrier Island, rebuilt and redeveloped following damage in the June 2014 cyclone.

“The base at Okiwi is a modern, fit-for purpose facility which will mean DOC staff have the support they need to maintain Great Barrier’s unique environment and wilderness experiences,” Ms Barry says.

In total redevelopment and expansion of the Okiwi base has cost $1.5 million, with construction completed in August.

A new estimate of Māui dolphin numbers is encouraging for the future of the species, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry say.

The preliminary results of a comprehensive scientific survey carried out over the last two summers has estimated the population of the critically endangered dolphin at approximately 63 adults, with 95% confidence there are between 57 and 75.

This represents an increase from a 2010-11 survey which estimated the number of adults at 55, with 95% confidence there were between 48 and 69.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has congratulated DOC staff involved in the successful eradication of mice from Maud Island in the Cook Strait.

“It’s now two years since a mouse was found on Maud Island and we’re able to declare it a pest-free sanctuary, as it was from the 1970s until 2013,” Ms Barry says.

Mice were discovered on the island in 2013. DOC workers carried out an eradication operation with brodifacoum poison over the following winter.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has encouraged New Zealanders to get outside and enjoy our special places this Mental Health Awareness Week.

“The theme of Mental Health Awareness Week this year is Connect with Nature for health and wellbeing, and there’s nowhere better to do that than on our conservation lands,” Ms Barry says.

Through its Healthy Nature, Healthy People programme DOC is working with the Mental Health Foundation to encourage people to spend more time in nature.

A new plan to raise wild kiwi numbers to more than 100,000 by 2030 has been released today by Conservation Minister Maggie Barry.

The draft Kiwi Recovery Plan 2017-2027 will be open for feedback from iwi partners and other stakeholders, including conservation groups, and sets a clear path forward for the conservation of New Zealand’s national bird.

“We are committed to delivering this ambitious and forward-thinking new strategy as part of the Government’s $11.2 million Budget 2015 investment in kiwi conservation,” Ms Barry says.