Local Government Act 2002

Specific obligations and restrictions on local authorities and other persons - Restrictions on disposal of parks, reserves, and endowment properties - Parks and reserves

139: Protection of regional parks

You could also call this:

“Regional parks are protected forever so everyone can enjoy them”

A regional park is land owned by a regional council. It’s used mainly for community, recreational, environmental, cultural, or spiritual purposes. This includes land that’s a reserve or managed under the Reserves Act 1977.

The Governor-General can make an order to protect a regional park or part of it forever. This means it can’t be sold or given away. The regional council has to ask the Minister to do this first.

Even if a park is protected, the council can still make small changes to its boundaries or sell a small part to manage it better. But they can only do this if keeping that small part wouldn’t really help the park’s conservation or recreational value. The council also needs to ask people what they think about selling the land, following the rules in section 82.

If the protected park includes reserve land, it stays as a reserve and follows the Reserves Act 1977. If the council wants to sell any of this reserve land, they have to follow special rules first.

When the Governor-General makes an order to protect a park, they need to clearly describe which park or part of the park it’s about. They can do this by using its name and legal description, or by describing where it is if that’s easier.

The order that protects a regional park is a type of law called secondary legislation.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM172964.

Topics:
Government and voting > Local councils
Environment and resources > Conservation

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138: Restriction on disposal of parks (by sale or otherwise), or

“Parks can't be sold or given away without asking people first”


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139A: Further provision in relation to regional parks, or

“New land can be added to regional parks after they're created”

Part 7 Specific obligations and restrictions on local authorities and other persons
Restrictions on disposal of parks, reserves, and endowment properties: Parks and reserves

139Protection of regional parks

  1. In this section and section 139A, regional park

  2. means land—
    1. owned by a regional council; and
      1. acquired or used principally for community, recreational, environmental, cultural, or spiritual purposes; and
      2. includes land within the meaning of paragraph (a) that is—
        1. reserve within the meaning of section 2(1) of the Reserves Act 1977; or
          1. otherwise held or administered under the Reserves Act 1977 or any earlier corresponding enactment.
          2. For the purpose of enabling a regional council to protect a regional park or part of a regional park in its region, the Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, declare the park or the part of the park to be protected in perpetuity from disposition (by sale or otherwise).

          3. The Minister must not make a recommendation unless the regional council has requested the Minister to do so.

          4. An Order in Council does not prevent a regional council from disposing of part of the regional park to which the order applies—

          5. to make a minor boundary adjustment to it:
            1. for the more efficient administration of it.
              1. However, subsection (4) applies only if—

              2. the retention of the land would not materially enhance the conservation or recreational value of the park; and
                1. the regional council has consulted in a manner that gives effect to the requirements of section 82 in determining whether to dispose of the land.
                  1. Any land within the meaning of subsection (1)(b) that is included in an Order in Council—

                  2. retains its classification under the Reserves Act 1977; and
                    1. remains subject to that Act; and
                      1. if the land is to be sold or disposed of under subsection (4) of this section, must first be dealt with under sections 24 and 25 of that Act.
                        1. An Order in Council must specify the regional park or the part of the regional park to which the order applies—

                        2. by name and legal description, if it is practicable to do so; or
                          1. by name and a detailed description of the location of the land, in any other case.
                            1. An order under subsection (2) is secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

                            Notes
                            • Section 139: substituted, on , by section 14 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2006 (2006 No 26).
                            • Section 139(5)(b): replaced, on , by section 45 of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Act 2014 (2014 No 55).
                            • Section 139(8): inserted, on , by section 3 of the Secondary Legislation Act 2021 (2021 No 7).