Possible additions to Arthurs Pass National Park

 Arthur's Pass NP may be expanding...

There is a possibility that Arthurs Pass National Park may be expanding sometime in the near future. The park has largely remained the same size for most of the last 20 odd years but there is a long history of new areas being included inside the park boundaries from time to time. 

The Poulter River was the last area added to Arthurs Pass NP

A proposal being championed by the FMC may see areas to the south west of the Taipo River being folded into the current park. 

What is the FMC?

The FMC or Federated Mountain Clubs of New Zealand is an umbrella organisation which advocates for outdoor users in New Zealand. They consist of almost every tramping club as well as the New Zealand Deerstalkers Association (NZDA) and various other fishing, MTB, 4 W/D, walking, kayaking, caving and canyoning groups. 

Logo of the Federated Mountain Clubs (FMC)

The FMC also have over 30 000 individual members (...including Jon...) so they really are the voice of the outdoor community here in Kiwiland. I thought it might be useful to look at one of the most exciting and interesting of the projects the FMC is currently working on. The project is centered around the huge areas of land controlled by DOC but which are undesignated at this time.

What to do with Stewardship Land?

When the Department of Conservation was set up in 1987 most of the land managed by the Crown was placed under their control. Much of the land had been previously designated as National Parks, Forest Parks, Scenic Reserves and Conservation Areas but there was also a lot of land with no legal standing. These areas with lesser/no control are known as Stewardship Land. 

The land surrounding Lake Kaniere is all Stewardship Land

This Stewardship Land was meant to be designated as something else within 10 years of the establishment of DOC but there has been little political will to do so. A lot of this land has resources like water, timber or minerals on it which various enterprises would like to exploit. Designating it would also cost the country as DOC would require additional resources to manage it. 

Around 33% of the DOC estate is Stewardship Land

The FMC have increased their focus on these 'Forgotten Lands' as demand to exploit them have increased over the years. There have already been several large mines built on Stewardship Land as well as over 15 proposals to build new hydro/irrigation dams, new roads and requests to exploit virgin forest for timber. The land is also vulnerable to 'land swaps' where large tracts of under researched land are swapped for smaller parcels with seeming higher value. This is often to the detriment of the environment...

 

An FMC Forgotten Lands poster.....

One of the assumed roles of the FMC is advocacy for stewardship land so they have a number of ongoing projects to have the land legally protected under the overall umbrella of the Forgotten Lands Campaign. This campaign is meant to bring public attention onto these areas and hopefully to kick start some sort of process for designating them. 

Wild Rivers Park:

There is a mass of DOC land between Paparoa NP and Fiordland NP which has no official designation at all. This Stewardship Land was supposed to have been designated a long time ago but successive governments since the 1980's have lacked the will, interest or motivation to do anything about it. It contains some of the finest un-blemished wild rivers and rugged backcountry areas in the country and is very vulnerable at this time.

There are large tracts of Stewardship Land on the West Coast

The main dangers are from unrestricted mining and the development of hydro electric dams in this area. The West Coast of the South Island is rich in timber and minerals including coal, iron sands, oil, gold and trace elements. All of these have potential markets overseas so there is great interest in exploiting them.

Stockton Open Cast Mine is on Stewardship Land on the West Coast

 The area is also rich in large river catchments which make ideal locations for hydro electric schemes. There are corporations and groups who want to exploit these resources regardless of the ecological and environmental value of the land. 

Arahura River, West Coast of the South Island

A group of interested parties including DOC, the local Regional Councils and the FMC are proposing a new park to protect these areas. Wild Rivers Park would encompass land from the Otira/Taramakau Rivers south to near Haast and would contain many of the iconic West Coast catchments including the Styx/Arahura/Hokitika/Toroha/Whitcombe/Waitaha/Wanganui/Copland/Karangahua/Landsborough and the Haast. 

Hokitika Gorge would be part of the Wild Rivers Park...

The Kokatahi River is also in the proposed Wild Rivers Park

It would also give greater protection to the inland lakes along the coast and some of the lowland swamp forests around the mountain fringes. Many of these are already scenic reserves which have less protected status than a Forest Park or National Park. It would achieve the long term goal of a contiguous protected land corridor all the way from Kahurangi in the north right down to Fiordland and Rakuira/Stewart Island.

 

Lake Kaniere would be in Wild Rivers Park

It is a bold and exciting project but there is serious opposition from many vested interest groups so while I ultimately think this proposal will go ahead I don't see it happening in the near future. What may happen is that parcels of land and river valleys will be added to existing National Parks, Forest Parks and Scenic Reserves.  

How to find Stewardship Land details online....

These areas really need protection as there are constant demands to utilise these river catchments and they need to be protected before they are degraded.

 

How this might impact Arthurs Pass National Park:

While there is a lot of support for a Wild Rivers Park any project of this size and type requires a lot of time to process and pass into law. The current government has a stated aim of designating stewardship land over the next 3-4 years which might make for a tight timeline for a totally new park. What may happen is that areas of Stewardship Land will instead be incorporated into existing parks. 

The proposed Wild Rivers Park is in yellow

The area to the south and west of the Taipo River is almost all Stewardship Land and takes in the area from the Taipo River right through to Lake Kaniere. There is talk doing the rounds that the whole area might be folded into a greatly expanded Arthurs Pass National Park. This would take in the Bold, Newton and Campbell Ranges as well as the Styx, Arahura and Big Wainihinahi Rivers. 

The area that may be added to Arthurs Pass NP

If it eventuates it would add many of the classic trans Southern Alp tracks and over a dozen huts to the existing park. It would push the park boundaries along SH73 and well into the West Coast. There is some precedent for this as much of this area was once earmarked for inclusion in Arthurs Pass NP but never added due to a variety of reasons.

The Taipo Valley is currently Stewardship Land...

I would love for this to come to fruition as it would preserve an area many people do not realise is not designated or protected in any way.  All of these valleys are classic West Coast backcountry terrain and deserve to be protected. 

The Arahura River might become part of Arthurs Pass NP

I will be very interested to see where this project leads...either to a new park or an expanded Arthurs Pass NP.