Minimising your impact

See also:

View the New Zealand Environmental Care Code 10 Point Checklist (PDF, 42K)

New Zealand Environmental Care Code 

Toitu te whenua (Leave the land undisturbed) 

A growing number of people enjoy outdoor recreation. Many of us like to visit our rural, backcountry, coastal and road-end areas. With this rise in use has come an increasing impact on the natural environment. Damaged plants, unsightly rubbish, eroding short cuts, polluted water, and deteriorating facilities are now more common.

Fortunately, along with the increase in the number of visitors, a more sensitive attitude to the environment is developing. Many picnickers, trampers, hunters, walkers, campers and other visitors to our natural areas realise that we must adopt a more caring attitude to the environment.

To help protect the natural environment, please follow these guidelines on your visit.


Grassland orchid (orthoceras strictum), Little Barrier Island. Photo: Dick Veitch.

Protect plants and wildlife

Treat New Zealand’s forests and birds with care and respect. They are unique and often rare.

Rubbish bin.

Remove rubbish

Litter is unattractive, harmful to wildlife and can increase vermin and disease. Plan your visits to reduce rubbish, and carry out what you carry in.

Lake Rotoroa, Nelson Lakes. Photo: Rudy Tetteroo.

Keep streams and lakes clean

When cleaning and washing, take the water and wash well away from the water source. Because soaps and detergents are harmful to water-life, drain used water into the soil to allow it to be filtered.

Cooking over a fire, Bobs Hut, Matakitaki Valley, Nelson Lakes National Park. Photo: C Rudge.

Take care with stoves and fires

Portable fuel stoves are less harmful to the environment and are more efficient than fires. If you do use a fire, keep it small, use only dead wood and make sure it is out by dousing it with water and checking the ashes before leaving.

Camping at Lake Angelus, Nelson Lakes National Park. Photo: Diana Parr.

Camp carefully

When camping, leave no trace of your visit.

Maori carvings, Lake Taupo. Photo: Helen Mitchell.

Respect our cultural heritage

Many places in New Zealand have a spiritual and historical significance. Treat these places with consideration and respect.

Tramper, Mount Luxmore, Kepler Track, Fiordland National Park. Photo copyright: Timothy Ensom (DOC USE ONLY).

Keep to the track

By keeping to the track, where one exists, you lessen the chance of damaging fragile plants.

Tramper looking toward Mount Aspiring, Mount Aspiring National Park. Photo: C Rudge.

Consider other people

Be considerate of other visitors who also have a right to enjoy the natural environment.



Remember

Protect the environment for your own sake, for the sake of those who come after you, and for the environment itself.

"The land is the property of a great family, some of whom are living, a few of whom are dead, most of whom are yet to come".

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Find out more

Publication

Planning a trip in the backcountry? (PDF, 415K)

Weather
Weather information
Information

Mountain safety council website

www.beacons.org.nz

Backcountry avalanche advisory website

Stop the spread of didymo

Check, Clean, Dry all items before entering, and when moving between, waterways.

Safety

Safety information

Always contact the nearest visitor centre for the latest information about facilities and conditions.

Contact
View a list of DOC Visitor Centres
 

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