13 Jul 10
In May we reported that the long awaited NZ Coastal Policy Statement (NZCPS) had been leaked by one of the Board of Inquiry (BOI) members Philip Woollaston. The Minister of Conservation had been sitting on the new policy, recommended by the BOI, for nearly a year and had denied Surfbreak Protection's request for release of the report under the Official Information Act.
Surfbreak Protection's particular interest is the proposed
Policy 20 for the protection of surfbreaks. The BOI heard many
written and oral submissions made by surfers.
Two weeks ago the full BOI report (367 pages) arrived in the
mailbox, with a letter from the minister saying that because
'circumstances had changed', she was now able to release the
report.
The good news is that protection of surfbreaks is now enshrined
in the new NZCPS, but with a slight amendment in that it has become
Policy 18. If you are interested in the BOI deliberations of the
proposal for protection of surfbreaks and their final
recommendation, you can read the Working Papers here (link).
The new NZCPS is yet to be signed off by the Minister of
Conservation. However a number of regional authorities have already
accepted the NZCPS and have, or are, implementing its principles
when their own regional policies and plans come up for review.
For those campaigning locally for protection of surfbreaks, the
new Policy 18 and the working papers can provide a valuable
resource for writing submissions.
See document.