The cost of national park trespass
Date: 10 April 2008
Expanding farming operations into Te Urewera National Park proved to be an expensive exercise for Galatea farmer, Stephen Orr this week when he pleaded guilty to five charges in Rotorua District Court. Department of Conservation (DOC) Aniwaniwa Area Manager, Glenn Mitchell said today that Mr Orr had a history of repeatedly allowing his stock to enter the national park.
"Since 2004, DOC has tried several times to persuade Mr Orr to stop his stock from wandering into the national park. We have also spoken to him about other issues relating to fencing and clearing of vegetation within the park. Ultimately, we were left with no alternative but to charge Mr Orr with offences under the National Parks Act 1980," Mr Mitchell said.
DOC charged Mr Orr with five offences, including two relating to cattle trespass in Te Urewera National Park, one of applying herbicide to plants in the park, one of fencing off and farming an area of the park and one of using water from the park to supply troughs he had installed in the park. Following his guilty pleas on all charges, Mr Orr was fined $200 for each charge and required to pay court costs of $130.
The charges followed DOC inspections of the boundary between the park and Mr Orr's property in 2007. In June, staff noted cattle well inside the park boundary. Rangers spoke to Mr Orr at that time and he admitted the cattle were his. In August 2007, more cattle were observed inside the park. In addition, on this occasion, fences, fencing equipment, a track, water troughs and pipes and damage to vegetation were all found inside the park.
"I just find it astounding that Mr Orr seemed incapable of understanding that it is not okay to extend private farming operations into a national park. Public conservation land is owned by the people of New Zealand, and has been given protected status for the benefit of everyone, not for the private profit of neighbouring individuals," Mr Mitchell said.
"Mr Orr deliberately extended his farm into the national park. In doing so, he damaged vegetation with installation of water troughs, pipes, tracking, fencing and use of herbicide and grazing stock. He also used water from the park for his stock. A number of landowners in the vicinity also use water from inside the park, but are required to obtain a concession from DOC to do so. The concessions process is designed to ensure that use of water from the park does not cause damage to the ecology of Te Urewera.
"Clearly, causing damage to the park was not an issue for Mr Orr. Our hope is that the combination of fines and five convictions will be more effective in persuading him that Te Urewera National Park is not his private property," Mr Mitchell said.
ENDS