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Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry today announced the finalists for the 2015 Green Ribbon Awards, which will this year mark 25 years of honouring New Zealand’s environmental leaders.

New Zealand’s most famous bird, the kiwi, will receive $11.2 million of operating funding over the next four years in an effort to arrest its serious ongoing decline in the wild.

Wild kiwi numbers are falling by 2 per cent a year and the bird could be extinct on the mainland in our grandchildren’s lifetimes, Conservation Minister Maggie Barry says.

The aim of the investment is to turn the 2 per cent decline into an annual increase as soon as possible.

New Zealand’s vulnerable native species will now have another strong voice for their protection with the announcement of the country’s first Threatened Species Ambassador.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry says the high-profile new role will be pivotal in educating New Zealanders and raising awareness of our threatened species.

“We all need to know about the unique birds, animals and plants which are our taonga and understand the efforts needed to conserve them,” Ms Barry says.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry is pleased to announce two key remnants of the native landscape of the Banks Peninsula will now be open for public access.

Two properties on opposite sides of Akaroa harbour have been bought with help from the contestable Nature Heritage Fund, which is allocated at the Minister’s discretion.

They will substantially increase the amount of publicly accessible land on the peninsula and be managed by the Department of Conservation.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry says the success of the Battle For Our Birds programme is a welcome victory for endangered native species.

The Department of Conservation today released preliminary monitoring results for the eight-month long anti-predator campaign.

“There are thousands more native birds alive today than there would have been without the work done by DOC’s Battle For Our Birds last summer,” Ms Barry says.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has announced the Government will contribute towards a joint bid to buy Glenfern Sanctuary on Great Barrier Island for the nation.

The Nature Heritage Fund, which is allocated at the Minister’s discretion, will put a significant amount of funding towards a consortium including the Auckland Council and Great Barrier Local Board looking to purchase Glenfern.

The sanctuary, in Port Fitzroy in the north of the island, was founded by the late sailing champion Tony Bouzaid in 1992 and is now for sale.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry will today open the new Aotea Conservation Park on Great Barrier Island, the first such park in the Auckland region.

The park will enable increased public access to the island’s breath-taking beauty, while safeguarding its natural treasures and unique species.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry today announced the Albany Scenic Reserve in Auckland will be closed until further notice to prevent the spread of kauri dieback.

The 40 hectare Department of Conservation reserve is infested with the spores which cause dieback, a disease ravaging New Zealand’s forest giants. Several kauri trees growing next to the track through the reserve are visibly infected with it.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has said she is concerned that a mature kauri tree is under threat.

The owner of a property on Paturoa Road has been granted permission to cut down the tree in order to build. The tree is on private land and the Auckland Council in this case, has the responsibility for deciding what activities can occur on the property.

Ms Barry says she is surprised by the Council’s decision not to notify the public of the process to remove a 200-year-old kauri.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry says today’s opening of the Mahu Whenua covenants under New Zealand's largest ever private land protection agreement, is a significant gift to the nation.

53,000 hectares of land in central Otago has been gifted by philanthropist and music producer Robert ‘Mutt’ Lange of Soho Property Ltd, through a partnership with the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust.

The Green Ribbon Awards, which honour New Zealand's environmental leaders, are to be a joint endeavour for the first time between the Ministry for the Environment and the Department of Conservation, Ministers Dr Nick Smith and Maggie Barry announced today.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry is pleased to announce a bumper crop of tuatara eggs on Te Hauturu-o-Toi/Little Barrier Island this breeding season.

“It’s an outstanding example of what can be achieved when we ensure that New Zealand’s ecosystems can flourish. Since the island was declared pest-free in 2006, the number of tuatara living in the wild has grown from just eight to 300,” says Ms Barry.

Rangers have confirmed there are 19 eggs in this year’s breeding season.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has today announced the Department of Conservation’s 2015 Community Conservation Partnerships Fund is open for submissions.

The fund was established in 2014 to provide $26 million over four years for community-led conservation projects around New Zealand.

“I am delighted that funding is being made available to communities to support their valuable conservation work. The first year has been a huge success with $8.5 million granted to a diverse range of 107 conservation projects nationwide,” says Ms Barry.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has congratulated Project Crimson for their achievements over the past 25 years in saving pohutukawa and rata trees and helping them flourish.

“Under the outstanding leadership of Devon McLean, the Project Crimson trust has proved a successful model of partnership between businesses, central and local government and community groups. It also emphasizes the importance of partners working together with DOC,” says Ms Barry.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry today announced a new Yealands Family Wines partnership with the Department of Conservation that will provide more than $100,000 over three years for conservation initiatives on and around the Queen Charlotte Track in the Marlborough Sounds.

“Winemaker Peter Yealands is renowned as a leader in sustainable wine production and his company’s values of environmental sustainability are reflected in its significant contribution to conservation on the Queen Charlotte Track and in Queen Charlotte Sound,” says Ms Barry.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry today welcomed the opening of Rangihoua Heritage Park in Northland as a special cultural and historical asset to be enjoyed by all New Zealanders.

The 46 hectare park, near Kerikeri, was opened to the public today by the Governor-General, Lieutenant General The Right Honourable Sir Jerry Mateparae.  

The park is the result of eight years of collaboration between the Marsden Cross Trust Board, the Anglican Church, Northland Iwi Ngati Torehina / Ngapuhi and the Department of Conservation.

A new joint strategy to tackle kauri dieback has been welcomed by Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry.

“Kauri dieback is a serious disease which needs a coordinated effort to tackle it. Therefore it’s great to see the Ministry for Primary Industries, Department of Conservation, Auckland Council, Northland Regional Council, Waikato Regional Council, Bay of Plenty Regional Council and tāngata whenua have developed this new strategy,” says Mr Guy.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has welcomed an innovative partnership to dramatically transform the way invasive predators are managed on mainland New Zealand.

The NEXT Foundation has partnered with philanthropists Gareth Morgan and Sam Morgan, and the Department of Conservation, to set up the Zero Invasive Predators (ZIP) project. All parties are contributing funding to the venture, with DOC providing $500,000 per year for an initial three years.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry today officially opened a “boot camp” for whio at the Tongariro National Trout Centre near Turangi.

The release of the first ducklings into the new hardening facility, or “boot camp”, marks a major step forward in the battle to save the endangered whio, or blue duck. The facility allows the birds to gain fitness and readiness before being released on their own into the wild.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has presented Clive Paton of Martinborough with the 2014 Loder Cup at a ceremony today, for his significant contribution to habitat restoration in New Zealand.

“Clive Paton is a remarkable individual and very deserving of being this year’s Loder Cup recipient. He is an inspirational example of somebody with drive, energy and a vision, who has woven conservation into his life,” says Ms Barry.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has cast her vote for the little blue penguin in Forest & Bird’s Seabird of the Year 2014.

“All of our marvellous seabirds deserve a vote but I’ve chosen to back the little blue. Although it’s the most common penguin around our coastlines, the species is in gradual decline,” says Ms Barry.

This year the annual poll to select New Zealand’s favourite bird is focusing on seabirds. Nearly half of the species that breed in New Zealand are in danger of becoming extinct.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has congratulated the winners of the inaugural Conservation Innovation Awards.

The World Wildlife Fund Conservation Innovation Awards were presented at a ceremony in Wellington last night. The awards recognise innovative approaches to conservation issues.

Ms Barry presented the inaugural award to inventor Gian Badraun and Microsystems Research for their product ‘Trap Minder’, an early response system for monitoring predator traps and bait stations.

Conservation Minister Maggie Barry has welcomed the start of Conservation Week, which this year has a theme of “Discover the world where you live.”

Conservation Week 2014 runs until 9^th November. There are more than 150 events planned nationwide, ranging from beach clean ups and special guided night walks, to training dogs to stay away from kiwi and native snail monitoring.

Many of the events are designed to be opportunities for people to take a behind-the-scenes look at projects in their local area and to learn more about conservation.