Conservation Act 1987

Miscellaneous

27A: Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata

You could also call this:

“Agreement to protect special land and its Maori values.”

The Minister can make a special agreement called a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata with the owner of Maori land or Crown land. This agreement is to manage the land for conservation purposes, which means to preserve and protect the land’s natural and historic values, as well as its spiritual and cultural values to Maori. The Minister can make this agreement if they think it is a good idea.

When you make a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata, it can last forever or for a certain amount of time. The people involved in the agreement can review it every 25 years to see if it is still working well. If they agree, they can stop the agreement or make changes to it.

If a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata is made, some rules from the Conservation Act will apply to the land, such as sections 36 to 43 and 43C to 47. These rules will help protect the land and its values. The Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata will be connected to the land, which means it will affect anyone who owns or leases the land in the future.

The Registrar-General of Land will put a notice on the record of title for the land to show that a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata has been made. This notice will help people know that the land has special rules to protect it. The Minister can also agree to reduce the rent for the land if it is fair and equitable to do so.

In some cases, the Minister of Lands needs to agree before a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata can be made. The Minister of Lands can also add conditions to the agreement or agree to reduce the rent. If the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata applies to part of a record of title, the Registrar-General of Land needs to make sure the land is clearly defined on a plan before they can put a notice on the record of title. The plan needs to be approved under the Land Transfer Act 2017. The Surveyor-General or the Chief Surveyor can give a certificate to confirm that the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata is adequately described and defined. This certificate helps ensure that the agreement is clear and accurate. Any money paid for a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata comes from money allocated by Parliament, as stated in section 33.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM106607.


Previous

27: Covenants, or

"A covenant is a promise to protect land for conservation that stays with the land forever."


Next

28: Resources other than land, or

"The Minister can buy and look after important things like animals and plants to help the environment, and get rid of things they no longer need."

Part 6 Miscellaneous

27ANga Whenua Rahui kawenata

  1. Notwithstanding any enactment or rule of law,—

  2. if satisfied that any Maori land or Crown land held under a Crown lease by Maori should be managed for conservation purposes so as to preserve and protect—the Minister may, subject to subsection (2), treat and agree with the owner or the lessee for a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata to provide for the management of the land in a manner that will achieve those purposes:
    1. the natural and historic values of the land; or
      1. the spiritual and cultural values which Maori associate with the land,—
      2. a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata under this section may be in perpetuity or for any specific term or may be in perpetuity subject to a condition that at agreed intervals of not less than 25 years the parties to the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata shall review the objectives, conditions, and continuance of the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata; and on such review the parties may mutually agree that the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata shall be terminated, or the owner or lessee may terminate the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata on giving such notice (being not less than 6 months) as may be agreed. The Crown shall have regard to the manawhenua of the owner or lessee in any such review:
        1. while any Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata under this section remains in force, sections 36 to 43 and 43C to 47, as far as they are applicable and with the necessary modifications, but subject to the terms of the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata, shall apply to the land affected thereby in all respects as if it were a conservation area, notwithstanding that the land or the interest of the lessee may be sold or otherwise disposed of:
          1. every such Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata shall run with and bind the land that is subject to the burden of the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata, and shall be deemed to be an interest in land for the purposes of the Land Transfer Act 2017:
            1. where a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata is entered into under this section, the Registrar-General of Land, on the application of the Director-General, shall, without fee, enter on the appropriate record of title relating to the land that is subject to the burden of the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata a notification thereof:
              1. subject to section 33, any money payable as consideration for a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata shall be paid out of money appropriated by Parliament.
                1. In the case of a Crown lease other than a lease administered by the Department of Conservation, the consent of the Minister of Lands shall be required before a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata is entered into, and that Minister may give consent subject to the inclusion of any condition in the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata or conditions, and may agree to a reduction in rent if, having regard to the basis for fixing the rent, it appears fair and equitable to do so.

                2. In the case of a Crown lease administered by the Department of Conservation, the Minister may agree to a reduction in rent if, having regard to the basis for fixing the rent, it appears fair and equitable to do so.

                3. Where the burden of a Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata under this section applies to land comprising part of the land in a record of title, the Registrar-General of Land shall not enter in any register a notification of the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata unless—

                4. the land to which the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata relates is defined on an existing plan approved under the Land Transfer Act 2017 or a new plan approved under that Act; or
                  1. the document incorporating the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata is accompanied by a certificate given by the Surveyor-General, or the Chief Surveyor of the land district in which the land is situated, to the effect that the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata is adequately described and properly defined—
                    1. for the nature of the Nga Whenua Rahui kawenata; and
                      1. in relation to existing surveys made in accordance with regulations for the time being in force for the purpose; and
                        1. in accordance with standards agreed from time to time by the Director-General and either the Surveyor-General or the Chief Surveyor, as the case may be.
                        Notes
                        • Section 27A: inserted, on , by section 3 of the Conservation Amendment Act 1993 (1993 No 9).
                        • Section 27A(1)(c): amended, on , by section 4 of the Conservation (Natural Heritage Protection) Act 2013 (2013 No 89).
                        • Section 27A(1)(d): amended, on , by section 250 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 (2017 No 30).
                        • Section 27A(1)(e): amended, on , by section 250 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 (2017 No 30).
                        • Section 27A(4): substituted, on , by section 21 of the Conservation Amendment Act 1994 (1994 No 108).
                        • Section 27A(4): amended, on , by section 250 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 (2017 No 30).
                        • Section 27A(4)(a): amended, on , by section 250 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 (2017 No 30).