Glossary

Area – An administrative unit of a conservancy. Each conservancy has up to 5 areas, each with an Area Office.

BioWeb – A national database recording information about the location and condition of flora, fauna, and archaeological sites of interest to the Department of Conservation.

Classification – Identifies the general purpose for which conservation land is to be managed. Land is classified under the Conservation Act 1987, National Parks Act 1980, Reserves Act 1977, or Wildlife Act 1953.

Concession – A lease, licence, permit, or easement granted under the Conservation Act 1987 to enable the carrying out of a trade, occupation, or business on conservation land.

Conservancy – An administrative unit of the Department of Conservation, responsible for delivering operational work in a particular geographical area. There are 13 conservancies, each with a Conservancy Office.

Conservation Board – A statutory body set up under the Conservation Act 1987. There are 14 Conservation Boards that provide advice to conservancy staff. There is one Conservation Board for each conservancy, and a separate Conservation Board for the Chatham Islands. The Minister of Conservation appoints most Conservation Board members, although a small number of member positions are specified by the Conservation Act 1987. Boards are independent of the Department of Conservation.

Conservation land – Publicly owned land that the Department manages for the Crown for conservation purposes.

Conservation management strategy – A statutory document to carry out statements of general policy, and set up objectives for the integrated management of natural and historic resources and for recreation, tourism, or other conservation purposes. The Conservation Act 1987 requires a conservation management strategy to be prepared, and reviewed every 10 years.

Conservation values – In this report, the intrinsic values of the natural and historic resources that are present, and any societal values associated with those intrinsic values or resources.

Conservator – A manager of a conservancy, who reports to one of the General Managers of Operations.

Directions and expectations – Internal Department of Conservation documents prepared by the Director-General, General Managers, and Conservators to help staff to prepare annual business plans. The Director-General’s directions and expectations inform the General Managers’ directions and expectations, which in turn inform the Conservators’ directions and expectations.

Director-General – Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Conservation.

General Managers of Operations – Two people accountable for the operational work of the Department of Conservation. The General Manager of Operations (Northern) is responsible for work in the North Island and Chatham Islands. The General Manager of Operations (Southern) is responsible for work in the South Island, Stewart Island, and sub-Antarctic islands. The General Managers of Operations report to the Director-General.

Land Acquisition Fund – A fund used to buy conservation land, or to pay for the costs of land transactions. The Department of Conservation manages this fund.

Land Environments of New Zealand (LENZ) – A classification of environments mapped over New Zealand’s landscape, produced by the Ministry for the Environment and Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research New Zealand Limited. LENZ identifies environments that share similar climates, soils, and landforms.

Nature Heritage Fund – A contestable Ministerial fund that may be used to protect conservation land. The protection can be legal (such as direct purchases or covenanting) or physical (such as fencing).

New Zealand Conservation Authority – An independent national body that provides advice to the Department of Conservation and to the Minister of Conservation. The New Zealand Conservation Authority was established under the Conservation Act 1987. It is responsible for approving conservation management strategies, and has roles under the Conservation Act 1987, National Parks Act 1980, Reserves Act 1977, and Wildlife Act 1953. The Minister of Conservation appoints the 13 members of the New Zealand Conservation Authority.

Pestlink – A Department of Conservation database. It records reports about animal pests.

Standard operating procedure – An internal document prepared by the Department of Conservation. It identifies processes and compliance requirements for undertaking particular tasks.

Statements of general policy – In this report, the 2 statutory policy documents – Conservation General Policy and General Policy for National Parks – prepared under the Conservation Act 1987 and National Parks Act 1980.