Hunters will be able to hunt on private land with special restrictions when New Zealand moves to Covid-19 alert level 3 but not on public conservation land.
Sport and recreation minister Grant Robertson and conservation minister Eugenie Sage outlined today what would be allowed when the alert level drops from 4 to 3 at 11.59pm on Monday 28 April.
Hunting was banned under alert level 4, but the shift to level 3 would mean hunters could once again hunt locally as long as they had the landholder’s permission, stayed within their region, and kept to their bubble.
Hunting would only be permitted on foot and overnight trips were not allowed. The use of quad bikes, off-road bikes, helicopters and other motorised vehicles was prohibited.
Sage said hunting on public conservation land would not be allowed until New Zealand returned to level 2.
“This helps with consistency across walking and mountain biking where people must stay local, rather than travelling to backcountry conservation land,” she said.
At level 3, people must not head into the backcountry/remote areas for their safety and the safety of others. DOC huts were also not available for use.
Sage said the start of duck hunting season would be postponed from Saturday 2 May to start on the second weekend after the date that is decided for when New Zealand moved to alert level 2. The season would also end later.
In order to hunt animals on public conservation land, hunters needed a Department of Conservation hunting permit. DOC had temporarily disabled the function on its website that allowed hunters to apply for permits but this would be reassessed at alert level 2.
On Monday, police arrested five men for illegally hunting deer on private land after being called to a rural property in the Waitomo area.
Additional charges were being considered, including in relation to breaching level 4 restrictions.
Police said there had also been reports of illegal hunting in east Otago, with several incidents of unlawful hunting and poaching in the Waikouaiti, Dunback, Macraes Flat and Lawrence areas.
