Growth of park pitched

A move to extend Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park’s boundary to include two ‘‘important’’ braided riverbeds has been given the thumbs up by an environment advocacy group.

The Department of Conservation (DOC) will soon talk with stakeholders to extend the national park’s boundary to include two riverbeds, the Tasman and Godley rivers, and some adjoining conservation land.

DOC says the move will protect important glacial-fed ecosystems and give them greater legislative protection and the news has been welcome by Forest and Bird New Zealand.

The department’s Canterbury Aoraki Conservation Board chairman Dr Mick Abbott confirmed this week it would start talking to stakeholders about the extension, as part of the Aoraki/Mt Cook Management Plan review.

‘‘The conservation board is really excited to have this aspect considered,’’ Abbott said.

The suggestion to include the riverbeds, and some adjoining conservation land, was included in a set of recommendations in the Canterbury (Waitaha) Conservation Management Strategy (CMS), published by DOC.

Both riverbeds, on crown land managed by Land Information New Zealand (Linz), do not have conservation status, he said. Each site, including river and land, was about 15 to 18 kilometres long and three to four kilometres wide.

They held significance, both nationally and internationally, because they were so unique, Abbott said.

The extension could bring more protection to braided rivers which were ‘‘increasingly important in value’’. ‘‘If you look at them, they are absolutely magnificent.’’

The proposed extensions follow pre-consultation meetings held last year to allow people to have input into the national park’s 10-year management plan review, undertaken concurrently with the review of the Westland Tai Poutini National Park Plan.

The park, which covers 70,728 hectares and comprises a 19-peak mountain range, including Aoraki/Mt Cook, is managed by DOC.

A DOC spokeswoman said the extension was still a suggestion at this stage and there was ‘‘a lot of work to be done’’.

If extended, the park area would increase to include the ‘‘important’’ glacial-fed, fresh water river ecosystems. ’’The rivers would be afforded greater legal protection under the National Parks Act,’’ she said.

They were being considered for their high ecological values and significance. Such a process would be a significant undertaking, and would require consultation with affected or interested parties.

Linz crown property group manager John Hook said it had not been approached by DOC regarding the extension.

‘‘The Commissioner of Crown Lands considers such requests on a case-by-case basis, as there may be many complex interests in, and uses of, rivers, existing third party rights, and costs that need to be addressed before any proposal could proceed.’’

Forest and Bird Canterbury and West Coast manager Jen Miller welcomed the news.

‘‘Having a whole riverbed system being managed by DOC is a really positive thing, particularly given the importance of the Tasman River Valley.

‘‘It would be really welcomed by Forest and Bird.’’

The environmental lobby group sent submissions when DOC’s management strategy was out for public consultation.

It was a ‘‘holistic’’ and efficient way of managing conservation values, she said.