2.
Interpretation
(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— aircraft has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Civil Aviation Act 1990 amenity values means those natural or physical qualities and characteristics of an area that contribute to people’s appreciation of its pleasantness, aesthetic coherence, and cultural and recreational attributes animal means any living stage of any member of the animal kingdom except human beings; and includes the eggs and the whole or any part of the carcass of any such member approved, in relation to a sustainable management plan, means approved by the Secretary under section 67F coupe means an area of forest that has been or is to be harvested exotic, in relation to a species of flora, means a species that is not an indigenous species finished or manufactured indigenous timber product— (a) means any indigenous wood product that has been manufactured into its final shape and form and is ready to be installed or used for its intended purpose without the need for any further machining or other modification; and (b) includes a complete item or a component of an item (whether assembled or in kitset form) such as joinery, furniture, toys, tools, and household utensils, household fixtures such as rails and toilet seats, ornaments such as picture frames and carvings, and similar items; but (c) does not include dressed or rough sawn timber, mouldings, panelling, furniture blanks, joinery blanks, building blanks, or similar items forest land means land on which forest is growing, land used for agroforestry, and land intended to be forested or used for agroforestry by the owner or occupier of the land forest produce or forest product includes trees and other plants and the produce of trees and other plants, and also includes earth, rock, sand, shingle, and minerals when found in or removed from any forest land or any other land for the time being administered by the Minister forestry officer means— (a) the chief executive of the Ministry: (b) any person appointed as a forestry officer under section 11 forestry sector means all matters and activities concerned with or affecting the production and use of goods from or on all forest land that is devoted primarily to commercial production; and shall include protection from disease and fire of all forests, the protective effects of forests, the harvesting and processing of trees and other forest plants, and other matters associated with commercial forestry production groundline, in relation to any living or dead tree, means the point at the base of the tree where the tree, when standing, commenced or commences to be naturally in contact with the ground indigenous, in relation to a species of flora or fauna, means a species that occurs naturally in New Zealand or arrived in New Zealand without human assistance indigenous forest land means land wholly or predominantly under the cover of indigenous flora landholding,— (a) in the case of land subject to a forest sink covenant as defined in section 67X, means a registered— (i) freehold estate in that land; or (ii) leasehold estate in that land; or (iii) interest in that land that entitles a person to receive units or the value of units based on carbon sequestration by that forest sink; but does not include a registered interest by way of charge or security: (b) in any other case, means an estate, right, title, or interest of any kind in or over an area of land by or under which indigenous timber may be harvested; but does not include an interest by way of charge or security mineral has the same meaning as in section 2(1) of the Crown Minerals Act 1991 mining operation means any operation in connection with mining, exploring, or prospecting for any mineral Minister means the Minister of Forestry Ministry means the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry or such other Ministry as has, with the authority of the Prime Minister, for the time being assumed responsibility for the relevant function or matter organism means a living animal or plant; and includes any micro-organism not classifiable as either but having the properties of living matter owner— (a) means any person who owns any landholding; and (b) includes— (i) the owners of any landholding where it is owned by 2 or more persons; and (ii) a group of owners of landholdings who are operating under the same sustainable management plan planted indigenous forest means any indigenous timber trees or tree ferns that have been planted on land that was not indigenous forest land immediately before such planting and was not indigenous forest land immediately before the land was prepared for such planting registered means,— (a) in relation to a sustainable forest management plan or sustainable forest management permit, recorded in accordance with section 67K: (b) in relation to a sawmill, registered in accordance with section 67D salvaged timber means— (a) timber from trees that have fallen naturally: (b) timber from trees that were felled to waste before 3 July 1989: (c) stumps remaining from any timber felled before that date: (d) roots remaining from any timber felled before that date;— and salvaged stump and salvaged root have corresponding meanings sawmill means any factory or industrial plant (whether permanently fixed or portable) that is directly dependent on supplies of logs and produces sawn timber or wood chips from the timber, whether for sale, use, or further treatment or processing; and includes any chipmill that produces woodchips and any industrial plant (whether permanently fixed or portable) used to process tree ferns; and includes any industrial plant (whether combined with or separate from any plant used to produce sawn timber or woodchips) that is used to produce veneer Secretary means the chief executive of the Ministry specified Maori land means land having the status of Maori land or General land owned by Maori, as defined in section 4 of Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993, and originally reserved or granted under— (a) the South Island Landless Maori Act 1906; or (b) section 12 of the Maori Land Amendment Act 1914; or (c) section 88 of the Reserves and Other Lands Disposal and Public Bodies Empowering Act 1916; or (d) section 110 of the Maori Purposes Act 1931 stump means the basal part of a living or dead tree (whether rooted or uprooted), being the roots and that part of the trunk that extends from the groundline to a point (up the trunk) equal to the maximum diameter of the trunk; and, for the purposes of this definition, any remnant of a tree shall be regarded as part of a complete tree sustainable forest management means the management of an area of indigenous forest land in a way that maintains the ability of the forest growing on that land to continue to provide a full range of products and amenities in perpetuity while retaining the forest’s natural values sustainable forest management permit means a sustainable forest management permit executed under section 67M sustainable forest management plan or plan means a sustainable forest management plan approved under section 67F timber— (a) means— (i) trees (excluding cuttings, suckers, and shoots); and (ii) woody plants able to be milled; and (b) includes branches, roots, and stumps of trees and other woody plants able to be milled, logs, woodchips, wood products, veneer, tree ferns, and tree fern fibre tree fern means all species of the families Cyatheaceae and Dicksoniaceae trees includes not only timber trees, but also all other kinds of trees, shrubs, and bushes, seedlings, saplings, cuttings, suckers, and shoots of every description vehicle means any wheeled or tracked device or hovercraft capable of carrying a person or persons, whether or not it is powered by an internal combustion engine vessel has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Harbours Act 1950 working day means any day except— (a) a Saturday, a Sunday, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day, Labour Day, the Sovereign’s birthday, and Waitangi Day; and (ab) if Waitangi Day or Anzac Day falls on a Saturday or a Sunday, the following Monday; and (b) a day in the period commencing with 20 December in any year and ending with 15 January in the following year.
(2) Unless in any case the context otherwise requires, every reference in this Act or any other Act or in any regulation, rule, order, agreement, deed, instrument, application, notice, licence, or other document whatsoever in force at the date on which this subsection comes into force— (a) to the Minister of Forests, shall hereafter be read as a reference to the Minister of Forestry: (b) to the New Zealand Forest Service, shall hereafter be read as a reference to the Ministry of Forestry: (c) to the Director-General of Forests or to a Conservator, shall hereafter be read as a reference to the Secretary of Forestry: (d) to a forest officer, shall hereafter be read as a reference to a forestry officer.
3.
Minister of Forestry
(1) The Governor-General may from time to time appoint a member of the Executive Council to hold office during his pleasure as Minister of Forestry.
(2) The member of the Executive Council holding office as the Commissioner of State Forests when this Act comes into force shall be deemed to have been appointed as Minister of Forestry under this Act.
(3) All references to the Commissioner of State Forests in any Act, regulation, rule, bylaw, order, or other enactment, or in any contract, agreement, deed, instrument, application, licence, notice, or other document whatsoever shall, unless inconsistent with the context, be read hereafter as references to the Minister of Forestry.
(4) Any contract, agreement, licence, lease, permit, or other right or authority which the Minister is authorised to enter into or grant under this or any other enactment shall be entered into or granted by him in the name and on behalf of the Sovereign. All such contracts, agreements, licences, leases, permits, and other authorities that have been entered into or granted by the Commissioner of State Forests before this Act comes into force shall be deemed to have been entered into or granted by him on behalf of the Sovereign, and all rights, powers, and liabilities vested in or imposed upon the Commissioner of State Forests or the Minister by any such contracts, agreements, licences, leases, permits, and other rights and authorities shall be deemed to vest in the Sovereign when this Act comes into force.
(5) The Minister may from time to time exercise on behalf of the Sovereign all the Sovereign’s rights and powers under any such contract, agreement, licence, lease, permit, right, or authority.
10.
Appointment of other officers
(1) There may from time to time be appointed as officers or employees of the public service such other officers and employees as may be necessary for the administration of this Act.
(2) [Repealed]
11.
Forestry officers
(1) There may from time to time be appointed under the Public Service Act 2020 such forestry officers as may be required for the purposes of this Act.
(2) The Minister may from time to time appoint as a forestry officer for the purposes of this Act any person employed in a State enterprise within the meaning of the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986 or in a Crown Research Institute within the meaning of the Crown Research Institutes Act 1992, and may prescribe the functions and powers of a person so appointed.
(3) No person is to be treated as employed in the State services for the purposes of the Public Service Act 2020, or in the Government service for the purposes of the Government Superannuation Fund Act 1956, by reason only of the person’s appointment under subsection (2).
13.
Protection of forestry officers, etc
Nothing done by any forestry officer, by an employee of the Ministry, or by any person appointed to a committee under section 15(2)(b) or to an Authority under section 71A shall, if done in good faith in the exercise of powers or in the performance of duties under this Act, subject that person to any personal liability in respect thereof.
15.
Powers of Minister
(1) The Minister shall have such powers as are reasonably necessary to enable the Ministry to perform its functions.
(2) Without limiting the provisions of subsection (1) the Minister may, from time to time,— (a) make financial grants or loans to persons and bodies engaged in the forestry sector: (b) appoint persons to such committees as the Minister thinks fit to advise or otherwise assist the Minister or the Secretary on any matters relating to forestry that the Minister may specify: (c) by agreement acquire any interest in land for the purposes of research, training, regulatory functions, or demonstrating any matter relating to the forestry sector, and may likewise dispose of any such interest.
15B.
Collection and disclosure of statistical information
(1) The Secretary may from time to time require returns to be made by growers, producers, distributors, processors, importers, exporters, or consumers of forest produce, and by other persons engaged in the forestry sector, and such returns shall give details as may be required relating to trees, timber, forest produce, or other goods grown, acquired, sawn, cut, manufactured, processed, converted, held, produced, sold, imported, exported, or disposed of.
(2) Information furnished to the Secretary under this section shall be used for statistical purposes only.
(3) All statistical information made available by the Secretary shall be arranged in such a manner as to prevent any particulars being identifiable by any person (other than the person by whom such particulars were supplied) as particulars relating to any particular person.
(4) Notwithstanding subsection (3) the Secretary may disclose the following information: (a) information supplied by a person in respect of which disclosure is consented to in writing by the person who supplied it: (b) information available to the public under any Act or public document: (c) information supplied by a local authority.
(5) Except in respect of a prosecution under this Act, no return or copy of a return made pursuant to this Act shall be disclosed or used as evidence in any proceedings whatever, and no forestry officer shall be compelled to give oral testimony in any proceedings regarding any return. Financial provisions
16
Receipts and expenditure
(1) All moneys received by the Crown from the operation of this Act shall be paid into a Crown Bank Account and shall be credited to such funds or accounts as may be determined from time to time by the Minister of Finance.
(2) All moneys payable under this Act shall be paid out of moneys from time to time appropriated by Parliament for the purpose.
(3) [Repealed]
(4) Notwithstanding subsection (2), any person or body, unless prohibited from doing so by any Act, regulation, or instrument of trust, may make to the Minister a grant or gift of money for specified or general purposes of this Act, and the Minister may accept any such grant or gift for such purposes.
(5) All money received by the Minister under subsection (4) shall be paid into a Crown Bank Account to the credit of an account known as the Forest Service Grants and Gifts Trust Account, and shall be applied, without further appropriation than this subsection, to the purposes for which the grant or gift was accepted by the Minister.
54
False entries or returns
Every person who makes or causes to be made, in any book, return, declaration, or statement required by this Act or by the regulations thereunder to be kept or made, any entry or writing which he knows to be false in any material particular commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $500: provided that if it be proved that the payment of royalties or other moneys payable to the Crown has been evaded, and that the false entry or writing has been made or used for any purpose in connection with the evasion, the court may add to the fine imposed on the conviction a further penalty not exceeding 3 times the amount of the moneys, the payment whereof shall be proved to have been so evaded.
59.
Offences with respect to forestry officers
Every person commits an offence against this Act who—
(a) offers violence to, or assaults, obstructs, threatens, or attempts to intimidate, any forestry officer or other person under the control of the Secretary while that officer or person is acting in the exercise of his powers or the discharge of his duties under this Act; or
(b) gives, or agrees to give, or offers to any such officer or person, any gift, or consideration as an inducement or reward for any act done or to be done, or any forbearance observed or to be observed, or any favour shown or to be shown, by that officer or person in or in relation to the exercise of such powers or the discharge of such duties as aforesaid.
60.
Other offences
Every person commits an offence against this Act who—
(a) impersonates or falsely pretends to be a forestry officer or employee of the Ministry; or
(b) without reasonable cause, fails to make a statistical or other return required by this Act before the time within which the Secretary requires it to be made expires; or
(c) counterfeits upon or unlawfully fixes to any forest produce any marks, label, or certificate used by and appropriated for the use of forestry officers or other persons in the exercise of their duties under this Act, or without due authority makes or causes to be made or uses or causes to be used, or has, in that person’s possession, any brand, stamp, or badge that resembles or purports to be a brand, stamp, or badge such as is usually used by forestry officers or other persons when exercising powers under this Act.
61.
General penalty for offences
Every person who commits an offence against this Act shall be liable on conviction,—
(a) in the case of an individual, to a fine not exceeding $2,000 and, if the offence is a continuing one, to a further fine not exceeding $200 for every day during which the offence continues:
(b) in the case of a body corporate, to a fine not exceeding $12,000, and, if the offence is a continuing one, to a fine not exceeding $1,200 for every day during which the offence continues.
62.
Liability for loss or damage
Every person convicted of an offence under this Act shall be liable for any loss or damage caused by the act constituting the offence in addition to the penalty for the offence, and the amount payable in respect of that liability may be awarded by the court in fixing the penalty and may be recovered as a fine. In assessing the amount so payable the court may take into account salaries, wages, and incidental expenses incurred in the investigation of the act constituting the offence and in remedying the damage caused by that act and all other relevant factors.
63.
Limitation of proceedings
Any proceedings in respect of any offence committed against this Act, or for the recovery of any penalty, fine, or forfeiture imposed thereunder, may be commenced at any time within 12 months from the time of the discovery of the offence.
64.
Minister of Forestry may act as agent for owner of private forest
(1) Subject to the terms of his appointment, the Minister of Forestry or Crown Forestry Management Limited may act as the agent of the Minister in charge of any other department of State or of any local authority or person for the purpose of establishing, managing, or protecting any forest, or managing or protecting any land used or intended to be used for any purpose in connection with any forest or proposed forest, or for the purpose of appraising or selling or utilising any timber or other forest produce, or making inspections and preparing reports for any such purpose as aforesaid, or for all or any of those purposes.
(2) Any such Minister, local authority, or person having power to carry out any such purpose may appoint the Minister of Forestry or Crown Forestry Management Limited to act as his agent for that purpose for such period, on such terms and conditions, and at such remuneration, as may be determined by agreement.
(3) [Repealed]
(4) All expenses incurred by the Minister under this section may be paid out of moneys appropriated by Parliament for the purpose, and all fees and other moneys received by him in respect of services rendered by him while acting as agent under this section shall be paid into a Crown Bank Account.
(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993, the provisions of this section shall apply to Maori land as defined by that Act, and the assembled owners of any such land may pass, in the manner prescribed by Part 9 of that Act, a resolution appointing the Minister or Crown Forestry Management Limited as their agent.
(6) Where the Minister is appointed under this section to act as agent for any purpose in connection with any land, forest, timber, or other forest produce— (a) [Repealed] (b) he may execute and issue in his own name as agent for and on behalf of the Minister, local authority, or person for whom he is acting such instruments as may be necessary to enable him to exercise his powers and carry out his duties; and (c) he may fix or approve any price or payment to be paid or made under any such instrument.
67AB.
Part does not permit felling or harvesting other than in accordance with relevant enactment
In the case of land held, managed, or administered by the Crown under the Conservation Act 1987 or any Act listed in Schedule 1 of that Act, this Part does not permit the felling or harvesting of timber other than in accordance with the provisions of the Act under which the land on which the timber is growing is held, managed, or administered.
67C.
Prohibition on export of certain indigenous forest produce
(1) No person shall export from New Zealand indigenous timber, except the following: (a) any grade of sawn beech or sawn rimu (other than wood chips), where the Secretary has stated in writing that he or she is satisfied that the timber has been taken from an area subject to, and managed in accordance with, a registered sustainable forest management plan or registered sustainable forest management permit: (b) any finished or manufactured indigenous timber product, regardless of the source of the timber used in the product: (c) any personal effects: (d) any stump or root, whether whole or sawn, where the Secretary has stated in writing that he or she is satisfied that the timber has been taken from an area subject to, and managed in accordance with, a registered sustainable forest management plan: (e) any salvaged stump or salvaged root, whether whole or sawn, where the Secretary has stated in writing that he or she is satisfied that the timber has been taken from an area that is not indigenous forest land: (f) any tree fern trunk or part of a tree fern trunk, or fibres from a tree fern trunk,— (i) where the Secretary has stated in writing that he or she is satisfied that the timber has been taken from an area subject to, and managed in accordance with, a registered sustainable forest management plan; or (ii) from indigenous forest land, where the Secretary has, subject to subsection (2), given his or her prior written approval to the removal of that timber; or (iii) where the Secretary has stated in writing that he or she is satisfied that that timber is from land that is not indigenous forest land: (g) any indigenous timber— (i) from a planted indigenous forest, if that timber is, or is from, a shrub, bush, seedling, or sapling; or (ii) other than indigenous timber to which subparagraph (i) applies, if the Secretary has stated in writing that he or she is satisfied that the timber has been harvested from a planted indigenous forest; or (iii) harvested from a forest subject to a forest sink covenant established in accordance with Part 3B.
(2) Before giving approval under subsection (1)(f)(ii), the Secretary must be satisfied that the area concerned can continue to supply an annual or periodic non-diminishing yield of tree fern trunks in perpetuity.
(3) No indigenous timber (other than personal effects and any finished or manufactured indigenous timber products) may be exported from New Zealand— (a) unless— (i) a notice of intention to export has been given to the Secretary in a form approved by the Secretary; and (ii) the notice of intention includes or is accompanied by a statement of the source of the timber; and (iii) the timber has been presented to a forestry officer for inspection and he or she has inspected and approved it; and (b) until the expiry of a period (if any) specified for the purposes of this paragraph in the notice of intention.
(4) For the purposes of this section,— (a) sawn beech means sawn beech timber; and (b) sawn rimu means sawn rimu timber— of any length that has a cross-sectional area not exceeding 30 000 square millimetres. Sawmill controls
67D.
Prohibition on milling indigenous timber
(1) No person may mill any indigenous timber at a sawmill unless the sawmill is registered in accordance with regulations made under section 72, and at least 1 of the following paragraphs applies to the harvesting of the timber: (a) the timber has been harvested from an area of land subject to, and managed in accordance with, a registered sustainable forest management plan or a registered sustainable forest management permit and the harvest is in accordance with an annual logging plan approved under section 67H: (b) the Secretary has stated in writing that he or she is satisfied that— (i) the timber has been or will be harvested from— (A) specified Maori land that is not land on which a forest specified in an Order in Council made under section 67DA is situated; or (B) land held, managed, or administered by the Crown under the Conservation Act 1987 or any Act listed in Schedule 1 of that Act; or (C) a planted indigenous forest; or (D) a forest subject to a forest sink covenant established in accordance with Part 3B; or (ii) the timber has been or will be felled— (A) for a public work as defined in the Public Works Act 1981; or (B) with the approval of the owner, for a mining operation; or (C) for construction or maintenance of an access way or water impoundment, or for a purpose directly necessary or desirable for scientific research; or (iii) the timber was first milled before 1 July 1993; or (iv) the timber is salvaged timber that has been or will be harvested from an area of land that is not indigenous forest land; or (v) the timber has been or will be harvested from windthrown trees or trees (whether standing or not) that have died from natural causes on land that is not subject to either a registered sustainable forest management plan or a registered sustainable forest management permit, and that he or she is satisfied that the forest’s natural values will be maintained: (c) the timber is a tree fern trunk, or is from a tree fern trunk, and the Secretary has stated in writing that he or she is satisfied that the timber has been or will be harvested from an area of land that is not indigenous forest land: (d) the timber is a tree fern trunk, or is from a tree fern trunk, and has been or will be harvested, with the prior written approval of the Secretary, from an area of land that is not subject to either a registered sustainable forest management plan or a registered sustainable forest management permit: (e) the timber has been seized under section 67R and sold, released, or disposed of in accordance with section 67S and the provisions of subparts 1, 6, 7, 9, and 10 of Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 and the Secretary has stated in writing that the person to whom the timber is sold, released, or disposed was not involved in the felling and harvesting of the timber in contravention of this Part.
(2) Before giving an approval under subsection (1)(d), the Secretary must be satisfied that the area concerned can continue to supply an annual or periodic non-diminishing yield of tree fern trunks in perpetuity, and that yield must include the harvesting of windthrown ferns or dead ferns as they become available.
(3) On the application of the owner of any area of land not subject to a sustainable forest management plan or a sustainable forest management permit, the Secretary may, in consultation with the Director-General of Conservation,— (a) approve the harvesting and milling, for the owner’s personal use, of not more than 50 cubic metres of indigenous timber (being roundwood) in any 10-year period; and (b) define the area from which the timber may be harvested and milled.
67DA.
Forests on specified Maori land to which sawmill controls apply
(1) The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, specify forests on specified Maori land to which section 67D(1)(b)(i)(A) does not apply.
(2) The Governor-General may make an Order in Council under subsection (1) in relation to a forest only if he or she is satisfied that the owner of the forest has agreed with the Minister to— (a) surrender the right to mill indigenous timber harvested from the forest; or (b) surrender the right to mill indigenous timber harvested from the forest other than in accordance with a registered sustainable forest management plan or a registered sustainable forest management permit. Felling controls
67DB.
Prohibition on felling indigenous timber
Where any land is specified in a registered sustainable forest management plan or a registered sustainable forest management permit as land to which that plan or permit applies, no person may fell indigenous timber on that land except in accordance with that plan or permit. Sustainable forest management plans
67E.
Sustainable forest management plans
(1) For the purposes of this Part, the Secretary may approve sustainable forest management plans under section 67F.
(2) A sustainable forest management plan applies to the area or areas of indigenous forest land specified in that plan.
(3) A sustainable forest management plan applies to the land specified in that plan,— (a) in the case of a landholding having a term of less than 50 years, for the balance of that term; or (b) in any other case, for the period specified in the plan, which period— (i) must not be less than 50 years; and (ii) may be renewed from time to time in accordance with section 67I.
67F.
Procedure for approval of sustainable forest management plans
(1) The owner of a landholding for an area of indigenous forest land may apply to the Secretary for approval of a draft sustainable forest management plan for all or part of that area.
(1A) An application may be made by lodging the draft plan at a Ministry office.
(2) As soon as practicable after lodgement of a draft plan and before making a decision in respect of the draft, the Secretary shall consult the Director-General of Conservation in every case, and shall also consult the chief executive of the Ministry of Maori Development if the area of indigenous forest land specified in the plan as the area of land to which the plan applies includes any Maori land.
(3) The Secretary may require the owner to incorporate in the draft plan such amendments as the Secretary may specify in writing.
(4) The Secretary may approve the draft plan with or without amendments.
67G.
Notice requirements
Where the Secretary—
(a) approves; or
(b) amends; or
(c) grants any exemption in respect of,— the beech coupe size provisions in a sustainable forest management plan, and that approval, amendment, or exemption enables beech to be harvested in coupes of more than 0.5 hectares, he or she shall notify that approval, amendment, or exemption by a notice in writing to the owner and by a notice to the public published in 1 or more daily newspapers circulating in the area concerned.
67H.
Secretary’s power to require amendments to plans
(1) Without limiting the generality of section 67F(3), the Secretary may, before approving a draft sustainable forest management plan, require the owner to amend the draft plan— (a) to correct the description of the area or areas specified in the plan as the area or areas to which the plan applies: (b) to reduce the proposed annual or periodic cut for any species: (c) to provide for a recording system for the purposes of the plan, or to amend the proposed recording system: (d) to reduce the size of, or to change the shape or location of, any coupe specified in the plan: (e) to amend the low impact techniques specified in the plan for the single tree or small group harvesting: (f) to incorporate such additional details as the Secretary may specify.
(1A) Work for the harvesting of timber (including, but not limited to, the felling of timber and the construction of roads, tracks, or landings) must not be carried out on an area of land specified in a registered sustainable forest management plan unless that work is carried out in accordance with an annual logging plan approved by the Secretary.
(2) In the case of an annual logging plan submitted to the Secretary in accordance with clause 9 of Schedule 2,— (a) no work shall be carried out under the annual logging plan unless the plan has been approved by the Secretary: (b) the Secretary may require the annual logging plan to be amended in such manner as he or she may specify in writing: (c) the Secretary may require that the annual logging plan specify trees to be harvested and trees to be retained or may specify the trees to be harvested and the trees to be retained; and such trees shall be harvested or retained accordingly: (d) as soon as practicable after receiving an annual logging plan, the Secretary shall either approve the plan or require the plan to be amended.
(3) The Secretary shall give the owner notice in writing of any requirement under this section and shall include in the notice a statement to the effect that the owner has an opportunity to comment to the Secretary about the requirement.
67I.
Other provisions relating to review and amendment of sustainable forest management plans
(1) While a sustainable forest management plan is current,— (a) the Secretary and the owner may amend the plan at any time by agreement: (b) the Secretary may amend the plan with or without the agreement of the owner, if either a natural event or an act constituting an offence against this Act— (i) reduces significantly the amenity values or other natural values in the area to which the plan applies; or (ii) reduces significantly the indigenous timber available for harvesting under the plan; or (iii) otherwise renders the plan inoperative.
(2) At 5-yearly or longer intervals, the Secretary, after consulting the owner and having regard to the views expressed by the owner, may review the plan and, subject to subsection (4), may require such amendments to be made to it as he or she thinks fit.
(3) At the expiration of the term of the plan, the Secretary, after consulting the owner, may renew the plan subject to such amendments as the Secretary may require.
(4) Before amending or renewing the plan, the Secretary shall consult with the Director-General of Conservation in every case, and shall also consult the chief executive of the Ministry of Maori Development if the land concerned includes any Maori land.
(5) The Director-General of Conservation may require the Secretary to review any plan after 5 years has elapsed since the approval or last renewal of the plan.
67J.
Matters to be incorporated in sustainable forest management plans
(1) The provisions of Schedule 2 shall apply in relation to sustainable forest management plans.
(2) Where satisfied that compliance by an owner with any provision of a sustainable forest management plan is unreasonable or impractical, the Secretary may, after consultation with the Director-General of Conservation and also with the chief executive of the Ministry of Maori Development if the land concerned includes any Maori land, exempt the owner from compliance with that provision on such conditions as he or she thinks fit.
67K.
Sustainable forest management plan to be recorded against record of title
(1) Every owner of land specified in a sustainable forest management plan shall, as soon as practicable after the plan has been approved, request the Registrar-General of Land to record the plan in accordance with this section.
(2) The Registrar-General of Land must, at the request of the owner, note the plan in the register.
(3) If no record of title for the land has been issued, the Registrar-General of Land must create a record of title for the plan.
(4) No sustainable forest management plan may be received for the issue of a record of title under subsection (3) unless it has endorsed on it a certificate by a licensed cadastral surveyor certifying that the land specified in that plan is within the boundaries of a parcel of land identified on a plan lodged with the Surveyor-General or the Registrar-General of Land.
(5) Where the land concerned is Maori land (as defined in section 4 of Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993) and that land is not within the boundaries of a parcel of land identified on a plan lodged in terms of subsection (4), the owner shall request the appropriate District Registrar of the Maori Land Court to enter on the memorial schedule of the Title Binder relating to the land a notification of the sustainable forest management plan; and the Registrar shall make the entry on that schedule accordingly and that entry shall be sufficient compliance with the requirements of this section.
(6) Notwithstanding any rule of law or equity to the contrary, every sustainable forest management plan shall run with and bind the land specified in the plan and shall be deemed to be an interest in land for the purposes of the Land Transfer Act 2017.
(7) Where any of the land to which the plan relates comprises part of land in a record or instrument of title, the owner may, instead of complying with section 224 of the Land Transfer Act 2017, indicate the boundaries of the land by reference to a diagram or an aerial photograph.
(8) No action shall lie against the Crown under subpart 3 of Part 2 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 in respect of any such boundary not defined in accordance with section 224 of that Act.
(9) The owner may at any time, in accordance with section 224 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 and in accordance with the regulations for the time being in force in that behalf, deposit a plan which shall— (a) define such area or areas as may be mutually agreed upon by the Secretary and the owner; and (b) for all purposes supersede the diagram or aerial photograph or relevant part of the diagram or aerial photograph; and (c) when deposited, be deemed to be incorporated in the interest in land comprising the plan.
(10) On the deposit of such plan, the Registrar-General of Land shall, if necessary, amend the description of the parcels included in the plan and shall endorse on any relevant record of title, lease, licence, or profit a memorial to the effect that the boundaries or such of the boundaries as are defined, have been surveyed.
(11) Where— (a) the Secretary and an owner agree to vary or cancel any notification of a plan under this section; or (b) pursuant to section 67I, the Secretary (with or without the agreement of the owner) amends or renews a sustainable forest management plan,— the Secretary may issue a certificate to the Registrar-General of Land or the appropriate District Registrar of the Maori Land Court, as the case may require, stating the effect of the agreement or amendment or renewal; and, upon receipt of the certificate, the Registrar-General of Land or the appropriate District Registrar must— (c) record the certificate in accordance with this section as if it were a plan; and (d) vary or cancel the notification to the extent necessary to give effect to the agreement or amendment or renewal stated in the certificate.
67L.
Plan not to constitute subdivision
The approval or registration of a sustainable forest management plan shall not constitute a subdivision of land for the purposes of the Local Government Act 1974 or the Resource Management Act 1991. Miscellaneous provisions
67M.
Sustainable forest management permits
(1) An owner of a landholding for an area of indigenous forest land may apply to the Secretary for a sustainable forest management permit for all or part of that area to allow the harvesting and milling of indigenous timber.
(2) A sustainable forest management permit has effect for 10 years from the date that permit is registered and— (a) authorises the harvesting and milling of indigenous timber in accordance with the permit from an area within the area of land specified in the permit; and (b) specifies the area of land to which the permit applies; and (c) specifies the quantity of timber fixed by the Secretary (being timber capable of being milled irrespective of its quality) that may be harvested and milled in accordance with the permit.
(3) A sustainable forest management permit must not authorise the harvesting and milling— (a) of more than 10%— (i) of the quantity of indigenous timber (excluding roots) capable of being milled standing on the area of land specified in the permit; and (ii) of the quantity of each species of indigenous timber (excluding roots) capable of being milled standing on the area of land specified in the permit; and (b) of more than the following volumes of indigenous timber: (i) 250 cubic metres of podocarp or kauri or shade-tolerant, exposure-sensitive, broadleaved hardwood species; and (ii) 500 cubic metres of beech or other light-demanding hardwood species.
(4) A second or subsequent sustainable forest management permit must not be issued in respect of any indigenous timber unless and until the Secretary is satisfied that the quantity of each species of indigenous timber (being timber capable of being milled, irrespective of its quality, but excluding roots) standing in the area to which the permit will apply is at least equivalent to the quantity of each species standing in the area at the date of the grant of the previous permit.
(5) A sustainable forest management permit expires 18 months after the date of issue of the permit unless it is registered before the close of that period.
(6) The Secretary must not grant a permit for an area of indigenous forest land that is specified— (a) in a sustainable forest management plan as an area of land to which that plan applies; or (b) in a permit, issued within the previous 18 months, as an area to which that permit applies; or (c) in a permit, registered within the previous 10 years, as an area to which the permit applies.
(7) The provisions of sections 67F(2), 67H(1A), (2), and (3), 67I, 67K, and 67L and the provisions and prescriptions set out in clauses 8, 9, and 10 of Schedule 2, with the necessary modifications, apply— (a) to every proposal under this section as if it were a draft sustainable forest management plan; and (b) to every permit under this section as if it were a sustainable forest management plan.
67N.
Provisions relating to representative area to be set aside The representative area that may be set aside and accordingly be unavailable for harvesting in accordance with clause 10(2)(a) of Schedule 2 may be determined by the Secretary in accordance with the following provisions:
(a) in exercising his or her discretion to determine the representative area in any case, the Secretary shall have regard to the flora, fauna, and other conservation values within the total area that is subject to, or is to be subject to, the plan:
(b) the Secretary may determine a representative area if satisfied that— (i) the area is of an adequate size and location to be accurately representative in the region concerned and adequately protective of such flora, fauna, and other conservation values in that region; or (ii) the flora, fauna, and other conservation values are adequately protected in the representative area together with any indigenous forest land protected under any Act in the region concerned.
67O.
Beech coupe size
(1) Notwithstanding anything in clause 10(2)(c) of Schedule 2, an owner may apply to the Secretary for approval of the felling of beech in coupes having an area exceeding 0.5 hectares.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), the Secretary may approve the felling of beech in coupes of such area not exceeding 20 hectares as he or she thinks appropriate.
(3) In considering an application under this section, the Secretary shall have regard to whether coupes exceeding 0.5 hectares would result in any of the following: (a) a significant adverse impact on flora and fauna, or other natural values: (b) a significant increase in soil erosion or in the risk of soil erosion: (c) a significant adverse impact on drainage or aquatic ecosystems: (d) a significant impact on indigenous forest regeneration: (e) a significant adverse impact on the amenity values of the forest.
(4) The matters referred to in subsection (3) shall be considered in relation to the region concerned and nationally.
67P.
Rights of appeal
(1) An owner may appeal to the Environment Court against a decision of the Secretary under section 67O not to grant the approval sought by the owner under that section.
(2) Any person or organisation having any interest in the decision greater than the public generally may, within 15 working days after the date on which the decision is notified under section 67G, appeal against a decision of the Secretary to the Environment Court if— (a) the decision is to approve a beech coupe size exceeding 0.5 hectares; or (b) the decision is the granting of an exemption under section 67J(2) in respect of beech coupe size provisions in a sustainable forest management plan.
(3) For the purposes of this section, Part 11 of the Resource Management Act 1991 shall apply, with the necessary modifications, as if the decision appealed against were a resource consent under that Act.
67Q.
Records
(1) The operator of any sawmill milling indigenous timber shall maintain in such form as may be prescribed by regulations made under section 72 a record of particulars relating to the source of such timber, including separate records specifically relating to— (a) timber from areas of land subject to a sustainable forest management plan; and (ab) timber harvested from areas of land subject to a sustainable forest management permit; and (b) timber harvested pursuant to an exemption given under this Act.
(2) The owner of any land subject to a registered sustainable forest management plan or a registered sustainable forest management permit shall maintain in such form as may be prescribed by regulations made under section 72 a record of particulars relating to the volume, type, and destination of timber harvested under the plan or permit.
67R.
Powers of entry and seizure
(1) For the purposes of this Part, the Secretary and any forestry officer shall have power— (a) to enter any land, premises, vehicle, conveyance, ship, aircraft, railway, railcar, or bulk cargo container for the purpose of inspecting any indigenous timber from any indigenous forest land or seeing whether any such timber exists there; and (b) to search therein for any indigenous timber; and (c) to enter any indigenous forest land; and (d) to require the production and surrender of any document relating to indigenous timber; and (e) to seize any indigenous timber that he or she reasonably believes is about to be, is being, or has been milled or exported, or has been felled or harvested, in contravention of this Part.
(2) The provisions of Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (except for subparts 2 and 3, sections 118 and 119, and subparts 5 and 8) apply.
67S.
Forfeiture of seized indigenous timber
(1) [Repealed]
(2) If satisfied that any indigenous timber seized under this Part may perish, rot, or spoil, the Secretary may arrange for its sale (at a price that is reasonable in the circumstances) in any manner the Secretary thinks fit.
(3) [Repealed]
(4) [Repealed]
(5) [Repealed]
(6) [Repealed]
(7) [Repealed]
(8) On the conviction of any person for any offence against this Act, any indigenous timber to which the offence relates that has been seized under this Act may, on the direction of the court, be forfeited to the Crown; and in that case shall be disposed of as the Secretary thinks fit.
(9) Any person whose timber has been forfeited to the Crown under this section or any person having a legal or equitable interest in any such timber (not being, in either case, a person convicted of an offence out of which the forfeiture arose) may apply to the Minister within 30 days of the conviction concerned for the release of the timber forfeited; and the Minister may order the release of the timber on payment to the Crown of any amount the Minister thinks appropriate, being an amount not exceeding the amount the items forfeited are estimated by the Secretary to be likely to realise if sold by public auction in New Zealand.
67T.
Offences
Every person commits an offence who—
(a) exports from New Zealand any indigenous timber in contravention of section 67C; or
(b) mills any indigenous timber contrary to section 67D; or
(c) falsifies any milling records required under this Part; or
(d) contravenes any provision of a registered sustainable forest management plan or registered sustainable forest management permit; or
(e) wilfully damages any indigenous timber in an area subject to a registered sustainable forest management plan or registered sustainable forest management permit; or
(f) carries out work for the harvesting of timber (including, but not limited to, the felling of timber and the construction of roads, tracks, or landings) on an area of land subject to a registered sustainable forest management plan, or a registered sustainable forest management permit, other than in accordance with an annual logging plan approved under section 67H; or
(fa) transports, mills (other than under section 67D(1)(e)), chips, cuts for firewood, or pulps any timber harvested from an indigenous forest, knowing that the timber is about to be, is being, or has been felled, harvested, milled, or exported in contravention of this Part; or
(fb) fells any indigenous timber on land subject to a registered sustainable forest management plan, or a registered sustainable forest management permit, other than in accordance with that plan or permit; or
(fc) harvests or mills indigenous timber that is subject to an approval under section 67D(3) other than in accordance with the approval; or
(g) fails to keep records required under section 67Q; or
(h) fails, without lawful excuse, to comply with the requirements of any forestry officer under this Part; or
(i) gives to any forestry officer, under this Part, any particulars knowing that they are false or misleading in any material respect.
67U.
Penalties
(1) Every person who commits an offence against any of paragraphs (a) to (f) of section 67T is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $200,000, and, if the offence is a continuing one, to a further fine not exceeding $10,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offence continues.
(2) Every person who commits an offence against any of paragraphs (g) to (i) of section 67T is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000, and, if the offence is a continuing one, to a further fine not exceeding $1,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offence continues.
(3) Where any body corporate is convicted of an offence against this Act, every director and every person concerned in the management of the body corporate shall be guilty of a like offence if it is proved— (a) that the act that constituted the offence took place with his or her authority, permission, or consent; or (b) that he or she knew or could be reasonably expected to have known that the offence was to be or was being committed and failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent or stop it.
Part 3B
Mechanism allowing landowners to access value created by Kyoto Protocol of carbon sequestration on land through establishment of forest sink covenants
67W.
Purpose of Part
The purpose of this Part is to provide a mechanism to allow landowners to access the value of carbon sequestration on land through the establishment of forest sink covenants.
67X.
Interpretation of Part
In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires,— carbon sequestration means the removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere by a forest sink forest sink means a forest prescribed in regulations made under section 67Y forest sink covenant means any covenant established under regulations made under section 67Y, or any variation of that covenant, for the purpose of establishing and maintaining a forest sink; including, but not limited to, controlling the harvesting of timber from the forest sink greenhouse gas has the same meaning as in section 4(1) of the Climate Change Response Act 2002 landowner means the owner of a freehold estate Protocol has the same meaning as in section 4(1) of the Climate Change Response Act 2002 units has the same meaning as in section 4(1) of the Climate Change Response Act 2002.
Subpart 1 - Forest sink covenants
67Y.
Regulation-making powers for forest sink covenants
(1) The Governor-General may make regulations to— (a) establish a framework to facilitate the establishment and ongoing administration of forest sink covenants that allow landowners to access the value of carbon sequestration on land, including (but not limited to) Crown land: (b) prescribe and update methodologies or mechanisms for measuring carbon sequestration or emissions of greenhouse gases from a forest sink: (c) prescribe the manner, quantity, type, and timing of units that may be transferred to or by a landowner: (d) prescribe requirements that a forest must meet to be a forest sink: (e) establish a dispute resolution process for disputes arising in relation to a forest sink or a forest sink covenant: (f) prescribe reporting and verification requirements in relation to a forest sink or forest sink covenant: (g) prescribe harvesting restrictions in relation to a forest sink: (h) establish penalties for breaches of a forest sink covenant: (i) prescribe any forms required to facilitate the framework specified in paragraph (a): (j) prescribe procedures and requirements relating to the selection, appointment, and performance of persons who carry out functions in relation to a forest sink covenant: (ja) prescribe the persons or organisations, or classes of persons or organisations, who have been recognised under section 92 of the Climate Change Response Act 2002 as being able to carry out verification functions under that Act, and who may carry out verification functions in relation to a forest sink or forest sink covenant: (k) prescribe records, returns, or information in relation to a forest sink covenant that a person or class of persons must keep or provide to the Minister: (l) prescribe requirements, including (but not limited to) ongoing obligations, or criteria for a landowner to provide a guarantor or insurer, or any other risk management arrangement that the Minister considers appropriate, to meet any obligations of the landowner under the Act or the forest sink covenant in the event of the landowner’s default.
(2) Without limiting subsection (1)(a), the framework may permit the Minister, on behalf of the Crown, to negotiate, and enter into, a forest sink covenant.
(2A) Regulations made under subsection (1)(b) may incorporate by reference any relevant— (a) methodologies prescribed in regulations made under section 163(1)(b) of the Climate Change Response Act 2002; or (b) guidelines or standards issued under regulations made under section 163(1)(d) of the Climate Change Response Act 2002.
(3) Despite subsection (1)(h), a penalty— (a) may only be imposed in respect of the proportion of forest on land subject to a forest sink covenant that is harvested in breach of the covenant; and (b) may not exceed the sum of— (i) all units received in respect of that proportion of the forest (or their monetary equivalent); and (ii) any additional units calculated on the basis of an annual compounding rate of 10% applied to each year’s carbon sequestration from that proportion of the forest for the period beginning on the date that the covenant came into force and ending on the date that the breach occurred (or their monetary equivalent).
(3A) Regulations made under subsection (1)(k) may incorporate by reference any form or format for a record, return, or information prescribed under section 90 of the Climate Change Response Act 2002, or in regulations made under section 168(1)(k) of that Act, or in any guidelines or standards issued under regulations made under section 163(1)(d) of that Act.
(4) However, nothing in this Part requires the Minister to negotiate, enter into, or enforce any provisions of, any forest sink covenant.
67Z.
Content of forest sink covenants
Without limiting the content of forest sink covenants, a forest sink covenant may—
(a) specify any or all of the following: (i) the obligations of any landowner for monitoring and administrative costs: (ii) the rights of any landowner with respect to receiving units based on carbon sequestration: (iii) any exceptions to the covenant to control the harvesting of timber, including (but not limited to) the use of plants for traditional Maori purposes: (iv) access to the land by the Secretary, or any of its contractors or agents, to— (A) verify carbon inventories; and (B) monitor compliance with the forest sink covenant: (v) the obligations of any landowner to meet any liabilities to the Crown arising if there is a loss of carbon from the landowner’s forest sink: (vi) a requirement, including (but not limited to) an ongoing obligation, for the landowner to provide a guarantor or insurer, or any other risk management arrangement that the Minister considers appropriate, to meet any obligations of the landowner under the Act or the forest sink covenant in the event of the landowner’s default: (vii) a requirement to control the harvesting of timber: (viii) a requirement to include a forest sink management plan:
(b) be expressed to— (i) have effect in perpetuity; and (ii) terminate if certain circumstances arise or certain conditions are met; and (iii) provide obligations if certain circumstances arise or certain conditions are met; and (iv) come into effect when registered; and (v) expire unless registered within 180 days of being agreed:
(c) be varied or cancelled by agreement between the landowner and the Minister if that agreement is registered under section 67ZD.
67ZA.
Landowner must obtain written consent of interested persons to enter into, vary, or cancel forest sink covenants
A landowner intending to enter into, vary, or cancel a forest sink covenant must obtain the written consent of each person with a registered interest in the affected land to enter into, vary, or cancel that forest sink covenant.
67ZB.
Nothing in Part makes Crown liable
(1) Provided the Crown has acted in good faith and with reasonable care, nothing in this Part makes the Crown liable to any person for compensation or damages in respect of any matter arising from a forest sink covenant.
(2) However, the Crown and the other party (or parties) to a forest sink covenant may agree to a different liability regime in that forest sink covenant.
67ZC.
Sections 316 to 318 of Property Law Act 2007 do not apply to forest sink covenants
Nothing in sections 316 to 318 of the Property Law Act 2007 applies to any forest sink covenant entered into in accordance with this Act.
67ZD.
Registrar-General of Land to register forest sink covenants
(1) A landowner who has entered into a forest sink covenant must, within 180 days of that covenant being agreed, submit that covenant to the Registrar-General of Land for registration under the Land Transfer Act 2017.
(2) If a forest sink covenant relates to land for which no record of title has been created, the Registrar-General of Land must— (a) create a record of title for the covenant if— (i) a licensed cadastral surveyor has certified that the land to which the covenant relates is within the boundaries of an identified parcel of land; and (ii) the Registrar-General of Land is satisfied that the certificate is correct; and (b) record the certificate of the licensed cadastral surveyor on the record of title issued for the covenant.
(3) If a forest sink covenant relates to Maori land (within the meaning of section 4 of Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993) for which no computer freehold register or provisional register has been created, the Registrar of the Maori Land Court must enter on the memorial schedule of the Title Binder relating to the Maori land a notification of the forest sink covenant.
(4) If, in respect of a forest sink covenant, the Registrar-General of Land receives a submission under subsection (1) or a notice from the Minister under section 67ZG, the Registrar-General of Land must enter in the record of title notification of— (a) that forest sink covenant; or (b) the variation, cancellation, or termination of that forest sink covenant.
(5) For the purposes of the Land Transfer Act 2017, a forest sink covenant, or an agreement to vary a forest sink covenant, is an instrument that— (a) may be registered; and (b) if registered, creates an interest in land that runs with that land.
(6) If a forest sink covenant is registered under the Land Transfer Act 2017, and any provision of that covenant has terminated, or has been varied or cancelled by an agreement,— (a) the Registrar-General of Land must, if satisfied that the provision has terminated, or has been varied or cancelled, make an entry on the record of title noting that the provision has terminated, or has been varied or cancelled; and (b) the forest sink covenant takes effect as varied or ceases to have effect (as the case may be).
(7) The landowner must provide the Registrar-General of Land with— (a) a diagram or an aerial photo that shows the boundaries of the land to which the forest sink covenant applies; and (b) if required by the Registrar-General of Land, a plan capable of deposit under section 224 of the Land Transfer Act 2017.
(8) A landowner subject to a registered forest sink covenant may, at any time, deposit a plan in accordance with section 224 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 and any relevant regulations that,— (a) with the agreement of the Minister, redefines the boundaries of the land subject to the covenant; and (b) supercedes any previously submitted diagram or aerial photograph, or any part of any previously submitted diagram or aerial photograph.
(9) If a plan is deposited under section 224 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 with respect to a forest sink covenant, the Registrar-General of Land must, if necessary, endorse, on any relevant record of title, a memorial that indicates that the boundaries of the land subject to the covenant, as defined, have been surveyed.
(10) A forest sink covenant may not be treated as a subdivision of land for the purposes of the Resource Management Act 1991.
67ZE.
The Crown may register charges with respect to land subject to forest sink covenants in certain circumstances
(1) The Minister may register a charge under subpart 5 of Part 3 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 against land subject to a forest sink covenant if— (a) liabilities are owed to the Crown by an owner of a landholding arising from the emission of greenhouse gases in relation to the forest sink on that land: (b) penalties are imposed for breaches by an owner of a landholding of the harvesting restrictions in relation to the forest sink on that land: (c) costs are incurred by the Crown in— (i) remedying a breach of the covenant; or (ii) enforcing its right to payment in relation to the covenant: (d) the covenant is breached.
(2) If the owner of a landholding fails or refuses, within the time provided for payment in the forest sink covenant or otherwise, to make any payment for which a charge may be registered under subsection (1), the failed or refused payment is an unpaid statutory debt owed to the Crown, and the amount by which it, or any unpaid part of it, is deemed to have been increased is the sum of— (a) 10% of the debt (or that part of the debt that remained unpaid after the expiry of the time provided for the debt’s payment); and (b) for every complete period of 12 months after that expiry during which the debt or any part of it (including any deemed increase calculated under this subsection) has remained unpaid, 10% of the debt or that part of the debt.
(3) If the owner of a landholding pays the statutory debt (including any deemed increase) or the Crown releases the owner of the landholding from the obligation to pay the debt, the Minister must release the relevant charge on the land (if any).
(4) For the purposes of this section, a charge that is registered by the Minister under subpart 5 of Part 3 of the Land Transfer Act 2017 against land subject to a forest sink covenant— (a) has priority over any subsequently registered mortgages, charges, and encumbrances with respect to that land; but (b) does not have priority over any prior registered mortgages, charges, and encumbrances with respect to that land.
67ZF.
Liability to the Crown of persons who have or had landholding subject to registered forest sink covenants
(1) If a person has a landholding in land that is subject to a registered forest sink covenant,— (a) the person is, unless a contrary intention appears in the covenant, personally liable to the Crown for the observance of all the obligations in the covenant: (b) the Crown may, in the event of a breach of an obligation in the covenant, seek any appropriate remedy directly against the person as if the person were a party to the covenant.
(2) If a person acquires a landholding in land that is subject to a registered forest sink covenant,— (a) the person is, unless a contrary intention appears in the covenant, personally liable to the Crown for— (i) the observance of all the obligations in the covenant: (ii) any liabilities arising from the emission of greenhouse gases from that forest sink that are owed to the Crown by any person who was an owner of a landholding in that land before the acquisition: (iii) any penalties imposed for breaches of the harvesting restrictions in relation to the forest sink on that land by any person who was an owner of a landholding in that land before the acquisition: (iv) any costs incurred by the Crown in— (A) remedying a breach of the covenant by any person who was an owner of a landholding in that land before the acquisition; or (B) enforcing its right to payment in respect of any person who was an owner before the acquisition: (b) the Crown may, in relation to any matter specified in paragraph (a), seek any appropriate remedy directly against the person.
(3) If a person ceases to have a landholding subject to a registered forest sink covenant, the person is no longer personally liable to the Crown for a breach of, or liabilities that arise under, the covenant unless the breach occurred or the liabilities arose while the person had the landholding.
(4) If 2 or more persons have a landholding subject to a registered forest sink covenant, the covenant is deemed to bind each person jointly and severally.
67ZG.
Minister must give notice to Registrar-General of Land if forest sink covenants are varied, cancelled, or terminated
If a forest sink covenant is varied, cancelled, or terminated, the Minister must give notice of the variation, cancellation, or termination in the prescribed form to the Registrar-General of Land.
67ZH.
Principles of cost recovery
(1) The Minister must take all reasonable steps to ensure that the direct and indirect costs of administering this Part that are not provided for by money appropriated by Parliament for the purpose are recovered under this subpart, whether by way of fees, levies, or otherwise.
(2) In determining the most appropriate method of cost recovery under section 67ZI, the Minister must have regard, as far as is reasonably practicable, to the following criteria: (a) equity, in that funding for a particular function, power, or service, or a particular class of functions, powers, or services, should generally, and to the extent practicable, be sourced from the users or beneficiaries of the relevant function, power, or service at a level commensurate with their use or benefit from the function, power, or service: (b) efficiency, in that costs should generally be allocated and recovered in order to ensure that maximum benefits are delivered at minimum cost: (c) justifiability, in that costs should be collected only to meet the actual and reasonable costs (including indirect costs) for the provision or exercise of the relevant function, power, or service: (d) transparency, in that costs should be identified and allocated as closely as practicable in relation to tangible service provision for the recovery period in which the service is provided.
(3) Costs should not be recovered under this subpart unless there has been appropriate consultation with affected persons or representatives of persons substantially affected.
(4) Nothing in subsection (3) requires consultation in relation to specific fees or charges, or the specific levels of fees or charges, so long as the fees or charges set are reasonably within the purview of any general consultation; and a failure to comply with subsection (3) does not affect the validity of any regulations made for the purposes of this subpart.
(5) Nothing in this section requires a strict apportionment of the costs to be recovered for a particular function or service based on usage; and, without limiting the way in which fees or charges may be set, a fee or charge may be set at a level or in a way that— (a) is determined by calculations that involve an averaging of costs or potential costs: (b) takes into account costs or potential costs of services that are not directly to be provided to the person who pays the fee or charge but which are an indirect or potential cost arising from the delivery of the service in question to a class of persons or all persons who use the service.
67ZI.
Methods of cost recovery
The methods by which costs may be recovered under this subpart are as follows:
(a) fixed fees or charges:
(b) fees or charges based on a scale or formula or at a rate determined on an hourly or other unit basis:
(c) use of a formula or other method of calculation for fixing fees and charges:
(d) the recovery by way of fee or charge of actual and reasonable costs expended in, or associated with, the performance of a service or function:
(e) estimated fees or charges, or fees or charges based on estimated costs, paid before the provision of the service or function, followed by reconciliation and an appropriate further payment or refund after provision of the service or function:
(f) levies:
(g) any combination of the above.
67ZJ.
Cost recovery to relate generally to financial year
(1) Except as provided in subsection (2), any regulations under this subpart that set a fee, charge, or levy that applies in any financial year— (a) must have been made before the start of that financial year; but (b) except as the regulations may otherwise provide, apply in that year and all subsequent years until revoked or replaced.
(2) Subsection (1) does not prevent the alteration or setting during any financial year of a fee, charge, or levy payable in that year if either— (a) the fee, charge, or levy is reduced, removed, or restated without substantive alteration; or (b) in the case of an increase or a new fee, charge, or levy,— (i) appropriate consultation has been carried out with persons or representatives of persons substantially affected by the alteration or setting; and (ii) the Minister is satisfied that those persons, or their representatives, agree or do not substantially disagree with the alteration or setting.
(3) Subsection (1) does not prevent the amendment of any regulation setting a fee, charge, or levy if any substantive alteration effected by the amendment is for the purpose of correcting an error.
(4) Recovery may be made in any financial year of any shortfall in cost recovery for any of the preceding 4 financial years, and allowance may be made for any over-recovery of costs in those years (including any estimated shortfall or over-recovery for the immediately preceding financial year).
67ZK.
Minister may review levels and methods of cost recovery
(1) The Minister may, as and when appropriate, review the levels and methods of cost recovery in relation to forest sink covenants.
(2) A review may make provision for recovery in any relevant financial year of any shortfall in cost recovery for any of the preceding 4 financial years, or make allowance for any over-recovery of costs in those years (including any estimated shortfall or over-recovery for the immediately preceding financial year).
(3) To avoid doubt, all areas of cost recovery need not be reviewed at the same time, nor is there any time limit on the making of regulations to implement the results of a review.
67ZL.
Fees and charges to be prescribed by regulations
(1) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council and on the recommendation of the Minister, make regulations prescribing fees and charges for the purposes of this Part.
(2) The fees and charges may be prescribed using any 1 or more of the methods specified in section 67ZI, or any combination of those methods.
(3) Different fees and charges, or different rates or types of fee or charge, may be prescribed in respect of different forest sink covenants.
(4) Without limiting subsection (3), the fees and charges prescribed may— (a) differ depending on whether a special or urgent service is provided: (b) include more than 1 level of fee or charge for the same service provided in different ways, or provided in, or in respect of, different places: (c) differ for otherwise similar services provided in different ways: (d) differ depending on the amount of service required or the components of the service required for the particular person.
(5) If regulations prescribe a formula for determining a fee or charge, the formula may specify the value attributed to any component of that formula.
(6) The Minister may not recommend the making of regulations under this section unless satisfied that, to the extent appropriate in the circumstances, the requirements of sections 67ZH and 67ZJ have been met.
67ZM.
Levies
(1) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council and on the recommendation of the Minister, impose a levy payable to the Secretary for the purposes of wholly or partially funding a service provided or function performed by the Ministry or the Secretary for the purposes of this Act.
(2) A levy order is a legislative instrument and a disallowable instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2012 and must be presented to the House of Representatives under section 41 of that Act.
67ZN.
Contents of levy order
(1) Every levy order under section 67ZM must specify— (a) the persons primarily responsible for paying the levy; and (b) the basis on which the amount of levy is to be calculated or ascertained; and (c) the persons (if any) to be exempt from paying the levy; and (d) the persons responsible for collecting the levy from those primarily responsible for paying it; and (e) the maximum rate of levy; and (f) how the actual rate of the levy is to be set; and (g) how the rates of the levy and variation of rates are to be notified; and (h) whether or not the persons collecting the levy are entitled to recover the cost of levy collection and the estimated amount.
(2) The levy order may prescribe any of the following matters: (a) the making of returns to the Minister for the purpose of enabling or assisting the determination of amounts of levy payable: (b) the circumstances in which, and conditions subject to which, persons may be allowed extensions of time for the payment of any levy: (c) the payment of additional or increased levy when amounts of levy otherwise payable have been paid late, paid in part, or not paid at all: (d) the holding of funds from which payments of levy are to be made, on trust in separate accounts.
67ZO.
Trust accounts required to be kept by persons collecting levies
(1) If a levy order made under section 67ZM requires the operation of a trust account for any levy money by the person responsible for collecting the levy,— (a) any amount held in such an account that is due to be paid to the Secretary by the levy collector is to be treated as levy money held on trust for the Secretary; and (b) any amount so held on trust is not available for the payment of a creditor (other than the Secretary) of the levy collector, and is not liable to be attached or taken in execution at the instance of that creditor; and (c) a person who ceases to be a person responsible for collecting a levy must continue to maintain the trust account until all the levy money payable to the Secretary in respect of the period during which the person was responsible for collecting the levy has been paid.
(2) Nothing in subsection (1)(c) affects any obligation or liability under this Act of any other person who has become responsible for collecting the levy concerned.
67ZP.
Exemptions, waivers, and refunds
Regulations made under this subpart may—
(a) provide for exemptions from, or waivers or refunds of, any fee, levy, or charge payable under this subpart, in whole or in part, in any class of case:
(b) authorise the Secretary to grant an exemption, waiver, or refund in any particular case or class of case.
67ZQ.
Fees, levies, and charges to constitute debt due to Secretary
Any fee, levy, or charge that has become payable is a debt due to the Secretary, and is recoverable by the Secretary as a debt in any court of competent jurisdiction. Until paid in full, it remains a debt due to the Crown.
67ZR.
Penalties for failure to pay fee, levy, or charge
(1) If a person has failed to pay to the Secretary by the due date any fee, levy, or charge payable under this subpart,— (a) section 14 of the Ministries of Agriculture and Forestry (Restructuring) Act 1997 applies to increase the amount payable; and (b) section 15 of that Act applies to allow the Secretary, in appropriate cases, to waive the payment of all or any of the amount of any such increase; and (c) section 16 of that Act applies to allow the Secretary to withdraw, or refuse to provide the person in default with, any service of the kind to which the debt relates.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1)(c) and section 16 of the Ministries of Agriculture and Forestry (Restructuring) Act 1997, and without limiting the generality of section 16 of that Act, the references in those provisions to the refusal to provide any service are to be treated as also authorising the Secretary, in an appropriate case, to refuse to perform any function under this Act leading to the issue of units in relation to the person in default.
(3) If the refusal requires the Secretary to provide any further service, or perform any further function involved in the refusal, the Secretary may recover any reasonable amount for the additional service, function, or costs as a debt due from the person who owns or is responsible for the operation concerned.
67ZS.
Obligation to pay fee, levy, charge, or penalty not suspended by dispute
The obligation of a person to pay any fee, levy, charge, or penalty under this subpart, and the right of the Secretary to receive and recover the fee, levy, charge, or penalty, are not suspended by any dispute between the person and the Secretary regarding the person’s liability to pay the fee, levy, charge, or penalty, or the amount of the fee, levy, charge, or penalty.
67ZT.
Levy orders are confirmable instruments
The explanatory note of a levy order made under section 67ZM must indicate that—
(a) it is a confirmable instrument under section 47B of the Legislation Act 2012; and
(b) it is revoked at a time stated in the note, unless earlier confirmed by an Act of Parliament; and
(c) the stated time is the applicable deadline under section 47C(1)(a) or (b) of that Act.
71B.
Restrictions on exercise of power of entry
(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act but subject to subsection (2), any provision in this Act or any regulations made under this Act giving any person the power to enter any land or premises, vehicle, conveyance, ship, vessel, aircraft, bulk cargo container, railway, or drilling rig without the consent of the owner or occupier shall be subject to Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 and to the following conditions: (a) entry shall only be made by the person or class of persons specified in the relevant provision or any constable authorised by the person or a member of that class of persons: (b) [Repealed] (c) [Repealed] (d) [Repealed] (e) entry— (i) into any dwellinghouse; and (ii) on to any land or into any premises, vehicle, conveyance, ship, vessel, aircraft, railway, or drilling rig to obtain evidence of an offence— shall be made following application in writing in the manner provided for an application for a search warrant in Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 by an authorised person to an issuing officer, who, if he has reason to believe that entry is necessary, may issue a warrant to every authorised person to enter for the stated purpose. (f) [Repealed]
(2) The conditions specified in subsection (1), other than that specified in paragraph (a) of that subsection, and the conditions set out in Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 relating to time of entry, notification of intention to enter, and evidence of identification or authorisation to enter, shall not apply in circumstances where there are reasonable grounds to believe— (a) that there is an immediate danger to life or property; or (b) that immediate entry is necessary to contain, eradicate, or prevent— (i) [Repealed] (ii) fire,— in order to avert serious damage to or destruction of any forest or forest produce. (c) [Repealed]
(3) The provisions of Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 apply.
(4) Despite subsection (3), sections 118 and 119 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 apply only in respect of a constable.
72.
Regulations
(1) The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make regulations not inconsistent with this Act for all or any of the following purposes: (a) prescribing the mode in which any forest produce is to be branded or marked for any purpose whatever; and providing for the registration of brands or marks: (b) prescribing the terms, conditions, and securities upon which money may be advanced to persons, local authorities, and companies for the establishment, maintenance, and protection of forests: (ba) providing for the registration of sawmills and other related factories or industrial plants; authorising the Secretary to require sawmill operators to furnish information for the purposes of this Act; and prescribing the mode of registration and the fees to be paid in respect of registration: (bb) prescribing such matters as are necessary or expedient for regulating the registration of sustainable forest management plans under the Land Transfer Act 1952: (bc) providing for the establishment and functions of advisory committees, consisting of persons to be appointed by the Minister, to advise the Minister on phytosanitary matters arising in relation to forestry: (c) prescribing offences for the breach of any regulations under this Act, or of the conditions of any licence, lease, permit, or other authority under this Act, and prescribing, on conviction,— (i) in the case of an individual, a term of imprisonment not exceeding 1 month, or a fine not exceeding $2,000, and, if the offence is a continuing one, a further fine not exceeding $200 for every day during which the offence continues, or to both such imprisonment and fine: (ii) in the case of a body corporate, a fine not exceeding $12,000, and, if the offence is a continuing one, a further fine not exceeding $1,200 for every day during which the offence continues: (d) prescribing the matters in respect of which fees are payable under this Act, the amounts of those fees or the method by which they are to be assessed, and the persons liable for payment of the fees: (e) generally for any purposes for which regulations are required or contemplated by this Act, and for giving full effect to the provisions of this Act.
(1A) [Repealed]
(2) [Repealed]
(3) Regulations made under this Act may be so made as to apply generally throughout New Zealand or within any specified part or parts thereof, or within the whole of New Zealand except such part or parts as may be specified in the regulations.
(4) [Repealed]
72A.
Remuneration and expenses
There shall be paid out of money appropriated by Parliament for the purpose to the members of any Authority constituted under section 71A or to any person appointed to a committee under section 15(2)(b) remuneration by way of fees, salary, or allowances, and travelling allowances and expenses in accordance with the Fees and Travelling Allowances Act 1951, and the provisions of that Act shall apply accordingly as if any such authority or committee were a statutory Board within the meaning of that Act.
73.
Repeals and savings
(1) The enactments mentioned in Schedule 1 are hereby repealed to the extent mentioned in that schedule.
(2) All Proclamations, Orders in Council, orders, appointments, licences, leases, permits, grants, regulations, agreements, records, instruments, rights, and generally all acts of authority which originated under any of the said enactments, and are subsisting or in force on the coming into force of this Act, shall enure for the purposes of this Act as fully and effectually as if they had originated under the corresponding provisions of this Act, and accordingly shall, where necessary, be deemed to have so originated. All matters and proceedings commenced under any such enactment, and pending or in progress on the coming into force of this Act, may be continued, completed, and enforced as if this Act had not been passed.
Schedule 1
Enactments repealed
s 73 Finance Act 1924 (1924 No 64) (Reprint of Statutes, Vol IV, p 786) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). Finance Act 1926 (1926 No 46) (Reprint of Statutes, Vol III, p 438; Vol VII, p 501) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). Finance Act 1927 (1927 No 5) (Reprint of Statutes, Vol III, p 436) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). Forests Act 1921–22 (1921–22 No 43) (Reprint of Statutes, Vol III, p 425) Forests Amendment Act 1925 (1925 No 37) (Reprint of Statutes, Vol III, p 448) Forests Amendment Act 1926 (1926 No 69) (Reprint of Statutes, Vol III, p 451) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). Forests Amendment Act 1948 (1948 No 56) Forests and Rural Fires Act 1947 (1947 No 34) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). Public Service Amendment Act 1946 (1946 No 42) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). Statutes Amendment Act 1939 (1939 No 39) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). Statutes Amendment Act 1941 (1941 No 26) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). Statutes Amendment Act 1947 (1947 No 60) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s). War Legislation and Statute Law Amendment Act 1918 (1918 No 10) (Reprint of Statutes, Vol III, p 447) Amendment(s) incorporated in the Act(s).
1.
Description of land
The plan shall describe the indigenous forest land to which the plan relates and its status, and shall include a map or plan showing clearly the extent and boundaries of the forest.
3.
Owner
(1) The plan shall state the full name and address of the owner of the land.
(2) The address to be stated— (a) shall, in the case of a body corporate, be the owner’s registered office: (b) may, in the case of multiple owners of Maori land, be the office of the appropriate Registrar of the Maori Land Court.
4.
Plan to specify relevant requirements under Resource Management Act 1991
The plan shall specify the relevant details of all applicable district plans and regional plans under the Resource Management Act 1991.
6.
Forestry inventory and produce to be removed
The plan shall specify—
(a) the names and species of indigenous timber and tree ferns that are proposed to be removed from the indigenous forest land; and
(b) details of the proposed volume of timber to be harvested; and
(c) forest inventory information to justify the proposed level of harvest.
7.
Management
The plan shall specify details of the manner in which it is proposed to manage the indigenous forest land, including re-establishment of the forest.
8.
Protection
The plan shall specify—
(a) any necessary measures to be taken to protect the forest, and, in particular, to protect the regenerating forest from pest, stock, fire, and other threats; and
(b) any necessary measures to retain and enhance flora and fauna and soil and water quality.
9.
Annual logging plan
(1) A logging plan or plans shall be submitted to the Secretary annually for approval under section 67H(2).
(2) The Secretary may require the owner to mark, in such manner as the Secretary may specify, the trees that are intended to be harvested during the period to which the logging plan applies.
(3) A logging plan shall— (a) delineate the area proposed to be felled during the annual period of the logging plan; and (b) describe the proposed methods of harvesting; and (c) show the location of all roads, tracks, and landings that exist or are proposed to be constructed; and (d) specify all special logging requirements, such as directional felling; and (e) show all waterways, and mark and describe all topography.
10.
Sustainable forest management prescriptions
(1) The principal sustainable forest management prescription is that the rate of harvest from a forest or group of forests managed as a unit shall be limited to a level at which the forest can continue to supply an annual or periodic non-diminishing yield in perpetuity, which yield shall include the harvest of wind-thrown or dead trees as they become available.
(2) The other sustainable management prescriptions are as follows: (a) an area that is representative of the forest area and does not exceed 20% of the total forest area to which the plan relates may be set aside and be unavailable for logging: (b) podocarp and kauri species shall be harvested only by single tree or small group harvesting using low impact techniques. Harvesting shall, as far as possible, be restricted to the selective removal of trees predisposed to windthrow or early death. Throughout the term of the sustainable management plan, the character and structure of all parts of the forest shall be maintained: (c) beech and other light-demanding hardwood species shall be harvested only in coupes of 0.5 hectares or less: (d) shade-tolerant and exposure-sensitive broadleaved hardwood species shall be harvested only by single tree or small group harvesting using low impact techniques. In creating gaps, regard shall be had for natural regeneration characteristics of the species targeted for logging: (e) where any podocarp, kauri, or shade-tolerant or exposure-sensitive broadleaved hardwood species is harvested and sufficient advanced growth is lacking, there shall be planted for each tree removed at least 5 nursery-raised seedlings of at least 60 centimetres in height of the same species which seedlings shall, where practicable, be raised from seed collected from the district in which such seedlings are to be planted: (f) where there is a failure of regeneration in a light-demanding hardwood forest, the failure shall be corrected by the planting of nursery-raised seedlings with preference being given to using seedlings of the same species which seedlings shall, where practicable, be raised from seed collected from the district in which the seedlings are to be planted.
(3) Before harvesting any coupe within a distance from a harvested coupe equal to the width of the harvested coupe, regeneration on the harvested coupe must— (a) have reached a predominant mean height of 4 metres; and (b) have reached a stocking of the harvested species equal to or greater than the forest before harvesting.
