Advocacy Plan and Policy
Aim
Establish the Club with local authorities and central government as a party requiring consultation on all important high country and alpine environmental matters.
Convener
Peter Barnes
Strategic Objectives:
- Prepare submissions on all DoC and local government proposals relevant to the Club.
- Consultation and close communication with other related allied conservation organisations.
Current Projects and Key Results:
- Research past Club policies and ensure that these are available in the website.
- Fiordland National Park Plan revision (submission made on draft).
- Promote the compilation of a list of important climbing huts in New Zealand for publication on the web an as information tool for both Recreation Advocacy and the Accommodation Committee.
- Tongariro National Park Plan revision (submission made on draft).
- Aspiring National Park Management Plan (pre draft submission made).
- Promotion of major upcoming issues in advance in Club publications with supporting information on the website.
Policy Guidelines
Summissions [The Climber 1991]
This policy summary is intended to provide a coherent Club policy on environmental matters. Its purpose is to guide, but not to dictate, Club responses to proposals with potential impact on NZ public lands, in particular mountain lands, or Antarctic or overseas mountain regions, or with potential effect on their usage by Club members.
The Club does not exist in a vacuum and should feel bound, even when not directly requested, to comment or even take a stand when its interests are affected. Typical opportunities for Club input are to national park draft management plans, proposals for concessions, mining privileges, etc. The Club should establish itself with consent authorities as an "affected party", in terms of the Resource Management Act, on all high-country and alpine environmental matters.
Further, the conduct of members should reflect the concern of the Club for the maintenance of a high quality, and accessible, environment. Environmental codes for home and overseas use are suggested. We recognise that the application of principles to particular cases will often be a more contentious matter.
Assess Issues [Club Committee Meeting, 20 Nov 1999]
The Club supports the principle of free and reasonable access to all land where recreational mountaineering and rock climbing is undertaken, having regard for conservation of the environment and the rights of private property owners. The NZAC encourages users to negotiate access agreements where private land is involved.
Access Issues [The Climber 1991]
There must be assured access to all public lands, particularly mountain lands, rock outcrops, and training or recreational walks close to cities and resorts. In particular, the recreational walks close to cities and resorts. In particular, the completely enclosed by private land must be addressed. It is vital that information on access be readily available, and accurate.
Motorised (ground, air, water) access within conservation lands should be controlled. Back country areas lose their remote quality if subjected to mechanised intrusion or noise from aeroplane or other engines. If flights are permitted, frequency and timing should be chosen to minimise impact. Over flights should also be discouraged by the management agency wherever possible. Different approaches to this problem, as exemplified by Mount Cook and Mount Aspiring national park management policies, should give sufficient variety to accommodate members' needs. However, members should consciously choose the least environmentally damaging mode of access which will serve their purpose.
The current definitions of Remote and Wilderness areas (Wilderness Advisory Group 1985), and the limitations on air access to them, must be retained. Wilderness is of prime importance for its very existence and also for its value as a refuge from the pressures of civilisation.
Any proposed changes to the designation of particular areas should be subject to public input, and the Club should actively promote changes it sees as desirable. Members must respect the restrictions which apply to particular areas, and should encourage the general public to respect them also.
Policy on Conservation, Protection, and Development [The Climber 1991]
The desirable qualities of mountain lands are dependent in a large measure on their low population density and low use factor, difficulty of travel, and freedom from pollution of all kinds (physical, chemical, visual, acoustic).
The Club is convinced that tourist developments are preferable to exploitation of the land by eg logging or mining. Nevertheless the benefits of any proposed use or development, whether publicly or privately funded, must be weighed against the erosion of the above-mentioned qualities. For example, roading, accommodation, airstrips, etc, are most appropriately sited either outside or on the periphery of land of recreational value. Hut and track developments should be carefully assessed for need and impact, rather than be automatically assumed to be beneficial.
It is recognised that allowing recreational and tourism developments in some areas can complement management strategies for protection of more remote areas.
Members should be aware that their own use of mountain lands may have impacts which, cumulatively, are far from minimal.
DoC Concessions [The Climber 1991]
Properly set up and conducted concessions should be of potential benefit to Club members and to the general public. Their environmental impact must be carefully assessed, in line with 2.1.22, and where a concession is granted its terms must be monitored and strictly enforced. In general conservation must take precedence, as provided for in National Parks Act 1980, Section 4 (1) and (2).
There should be no piecemeal relaxation of terms without public input.
Concessionaires must not be allowed to preempt benefits (e.g. establishment of private huts, fixed camps, or food or gear dumps, on prime camping sites; use of bunks in park huts; prime fishing water; air access where permitted), which should be available to all on a first-come basis.
Government's policy (as at 1992) is to charge "market related resource rentals" (i.e. as for concessionaires) to recreational or non-profit organisations e.g. for club huts on conservation land. The next step, extension of the user pays principle to individual members of the public using certain tracks or even entering certain conservation lands, is already a reality. This is a tendency which the Club must resist and seek to reverse.
Mining [The Climber 1991]
Insofar as mining activities produce adverse effects which cannot be avoided, mitigated, or remedied, consents for these activities in National and Conservation Parks, and in other areas of high scenic and recreational value, must be opposed.
National Parks are the repositories of the highest quality water and air, biodiversity store, quiet, peace, and sense of sanctuary, and these values must not be compromised. Any mining permitted must be subject to sufficient monetary bonds to ensure complete restoration.
Under the Resource Management Act it is not yet clear at what stage in the licensing process opposition can most effectively be mounted. The Club may need to obtain expert opinion on this. However it will usually be advisable to make mining companies aware from the outset that any development will be opposed, so that exploration is likely to be a waste of effort.
Policy on Sale or Transfer of Public Lands [The Climber 1991]
Public lands are a vital recreational resource. The Club is strongly opposed to the sale or transfer of public lands to commercial interests. In particular, the free holding of large areas for ski fields or for safari type ventures is quite unacceptable. The Club does not believe that adequate rights of public access to alienated lands can be negotiated or guaranteed in perpetuity.
Policy on Private and Leasehold Lands [The Climber 1991]
The Club and its members must remain sensitive to the rights of landowners and the lessees of pastoral runs.
The Club believes that access to and use of climbing venues on private land should be available under reasonable conditions. The Club, or Sections, must be prepared to negotiate conditions on member's behalf.
Environmental Codes [The Climber 1991]
The Club endorses the following codes and expects that members will be guided by them. More restrictive codes may apply to specific areas. It may be appropriate to expand these codes if it is planned to use them for e.g. instruction of intending members.
NZ Alpine Climbing
- Where access is not legally defined, permission to proceed must be obtained from the runholder/landowner.
- Farm operations must not be interfered with.
- Permission must be obtained for the use of station huts.
- All rubbish must be carried out.
- Live trees or shrubs must not be cut or blazed.
- Fires must be extinguished before leaving.
- Cooking should be by portable stoves for preference.
- Campsite construction should be kept to a minimum and sites left as nearly as possible in their natural state.
- Pollution of streams and lakes must be avoided, especially by soap or detergent or by toilet wastes. The latter should be buried well away from water and secured against excavation by animals.
- Native wildlife and plants must be protected. Alpine plants may be particularly at risk during campsite preparation.
- Areas of Maori cultural significance must be left undisturbed or better avoided.
Rockclimbing
- Before entering private land permission to climb must be obtained. Agreements made and access routes defined must be strictly adhered to. Good communications should be maintained with the landowner by all Club members making use of access privileges.
- Rockclimbing must have the lowest possible impact on the crag and environs. Climbing should be avoided in areas of cultural or special scientific or ecological significance. Steep rocks are often the last refuge of native plants threatened by grazing; this should be borne in mind when clearing holds or stances.
- Native wildlife and plants must be protected. Live trees must not be damaged.
- Permission to use bolts should be obtained from the landholder before using them. Bolts used should be the minimum number required for safety. They should be placed with forethought and be made completely safe to use.
- Names of routes should not be offensive.
- Camps should be sited only in designated areas or by agreement with the landholder, and should be kept tidy. All rubbish should be removed, and crags cleared of slings, ropes, etc.
- The provision of toilets by, or with the agreement of, the landholder, should be encouraged. In their absence, toilet wastes should be securely buried away from water supplies and high use areas or, better, carried out.
Policy on Overseas Climbing and Antarctic Expeditions [The Climber 1991]
Attitudes to overseas mountain environments and to Antarctica should be no different from attitudes to our own mountains. However an adequate degree of environmental care requires a measure of forethought in expedition planning and the setting aside of funds for cleanup. The problem is exacerbated by the distance from, or possibly complete lack of, proper disposal facilities in many countries, and by the scale of operations.
The following set of rules is suggested as minimal guidelines.
- Environmental requirements imposed by host country, Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR), or claimant state, must be observed.
- Expedition activities must be respectful of the culture of the host country and in particular must not damage designated areas, either of special scientific interest or of special (e.g. religious) significance to the local populace; they must not pollute local water supplies, or leave dumps of unsightly or unsanitary rubbish.
- Before the expedition leaves the area all expedition material must be removed from advanced campsites, preferably by transporting to base camp for subsequent removal. If this is not possible it should, as a last resort, be crushed or burnt and disposed of in deep crevasses.
- Material from base camps must be removed for disposal at sites, or in a manner, approved of by the host country, SCAR, or the claimant state.
- Time and money should be set aside for these operations when planning the expedition.
