3. The board's district
A group of 40 scattered islands makes up the Chatham Islands. They are 768 kilometres from Wellington and lie at 44 in the path of the Roaring Forties. For much of the year the climate is temperate - temperatures in the low twenties in midsummer which can drop to between 5 and 8 degrees in the winter. The main island includes lagoons and lakes and is surrounded by a vast expanse of ocean.
The Chatham Islands have a total land area of approximately 97,000 ha, including Chatham Island (90,000 hectares) and Pitt Island (6,326 hectares) and the outlying islands and rock stacks. The department of Conservation has an Area Office at Te One on Chatham Island and a permanent staff member on Pitt Island. Volunteers and staff are present on South East Island (Rangatira) and Mangere Island for several months of the year, undertaking species protection work during the breeding season of endangered bird species.
The ocean that surrounds these islands is rich in marine life and supports nationally significant populations of whales, dolphins, seals and also internationally-significant populations of sea birds.
The New Zealand Geo-preservation Inventory lists 31 sites of nationally important geological interest. There are 11 plant species, 16 birds, 1 reptile and over 50 invertebrate species endemic to these islands. Twenty percent of New Zealand's threatened birds (forest and sea birds), 14 percent of threatened plants, and 8.5 percent of New Zealand's threatened freshwater fish occur on the Chatham Islands. The Chatham Islands have 700 archaeological sites recorded and many more unrecorded.
The Chatham Islands Conservation board represents an island population of approximately 700 people and has particularly close contact with the community. Chatham Islanders have very strong ties to their land and resources, reflected by their livelihoods of fishing, farming, and tourism. The board enjoys good working relationships with these groups. The board also consults and works with iwi on the Chatham Islands along with the Chatham Islands Council, Enterprise Trust and the Federated Farmers.
Covenanted land is a strong feature of Chatham Island conservation with large areas of land under private protection through the Nature Heritage Fund and Nga Whenua Rahui Covenant.
Public lands administered by the department are managed under various categories and amount to 7 percent of the total island's land mass, which are represented in the following categories:
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Area Total (approx)
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3
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Historic reserves
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1,280 ha
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7
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Conservation areas
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750 ha
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9
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Scenic reserves
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2,900 ha
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3
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Nature reserves
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1,570 ha
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1
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Conservation area (lease)
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1,283 ha
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