Policy – Te Tira Whakāmataki

Kaupapa Here | Policy Resources

Te Tira Whakamātaki dedicates time to shaping new environmental policy and challenging existing Crown policy, all grounded by the rights afforded by Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Government policy is relevant to our mahi in te taiao because it often dictates where the support, pūtea (money), and other resources will be directed which can make a huge difference in the success of biodiversity and biosecurity initiatives. It is especially relevant to Māori because policy is a key tool that the Crown wields to exercise control over te taiao and our taonga species.

Read more about why it is important to make submissions here.

Open Consultations | Have Your Say

Governments are rewriting the rules for our whenua, wai and moana faster than most of us can track. New bills, reforms and consultations open and close across a dozen different agencies, often with short windows and little notice.

The table below brings the ones that matter for te taiao and Te Tiriti into one place. That includes what’s open now, who’s asking, when submissions close, and where to have your say. Where we’ve made a submission, you’ll find it here too.

You don’t have to be an expert. A few clear sentences about what a change means for your whenua, wai and taonga is a submission worth making. Need a hand, or want us to support a collective submission from your rohe? Email admin@ttw.nz.

Share this with your iwi, hapū, marae and taiao teams. The more of us who submit, the harder these changes are to push through quietly

Consultation / Bill	Who’s asking	Closes	Have your say	TTW Submission
Proposed local rock lobster management measures at Aotea Great Barrier Island – proposed local measures requested by the Aotea/Great Barrier Local Board and Ngāti Rehua Ngātiwai ki Aotea Iwi Trust Board	MPI / Fisheries New Zealand	4 September 2026	Have your say	–
Consultation on provisions in the Hamilton City Operative District Plan – feedback on planning provisions covering urban tree canopy rules, deep soil planting, electric vehicle charging infrastructure and related district plan settings	Ministry for Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport	7 September 2026	Have your say	–
Proposed naming of wildlife management areas and conservation parks – proposed names for six new wildlife management areas and four conservation parks in the Western South Island	DOC	9 September 2026	Have your say	–
Te Punawaitī and Wairepo Stream official names – proposals to assign official names to a spring and stream at Waikawa, northeast of Picton	NZ Geographic Board / Toitū Te Whenua LINZ	10 September 2026	Have your say	–
Publishing summary information about hazardous substances – feedback on what hazardous substance information should be shared in EPA annual reporting	EPA	11 September 2026	Have your say	–
Proposed temporary fisheries closure along the western Taranaki coast – requested 2-year closure to help shellfish recovery, support further data collection, and develop longer-term protection	MPI / Fisheries New Zealand	16 September 2026	Have your say	–
Draft import health standard for specified animal products for human use – proposed new import health standard covering specified animal products for human consumption, therapeutic use, cosmetics and related products	MPI / Biosecurity New Zealand	18 September 2026	Have your say	–
Draft import health standard for microorganisms, biological products derived from animals, and cell lines – proposed new import health standard for biological products, microorganisms, cell cultures and related research-use imports	MPI / Biosecurity New Zealand	18 September 2026	Have your say	–
Reopening Whangārei Harbour to recreational scallop fishing – feedback on whether Whangārei Harbour should reopen to limited recreational scallop fishing while the wider Northland scallop fishery remains closed	MPI / Fisheries New Zealand	18 September 2026	Have your say	–
Proposed changes to New Zealand’s organic regulations – proposals to make the organic regulatory system clearer, more practical, proportionate, and ready for full compliance in 2028	MPI	22 September 2026	Have your say	–
Proposed amendments to the Graphic Materials Group Standard – proposed changes to the rules for hazardous substances in graphic materials used by children	EPA	29 September 2026	Have your say	–
Proposed group standard for treated seed – further consultation on updated proposals for regulating treated seed and managing risks from hazardous substances used in seed treatment	EPA	29 September 2026	Have your say	–
Testing the approach to National Policy Direction – feedback on the illustrative National Policy Direction for the proposed new planning system	Ministry for Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport	16 October 2026	Have your say	–
He Kawa Ora mō Te Papa-Kura-o-Taranaki – early comments to help shape the national park management plan for Te Papa-Kura-o-Taranaki	Te Tōpuni Kōkōrangi / DOC	20 October 2026	Have your say	–
Last updated: 31 August 2026

Note: We track the consultations that matter most for te taiao and Te Tiriti. For everything currently open across government, see:

Submissions

Te Tira Whakamātaki is acutely aware that while tāngata whenua engagement in policy development is a critical step in the revising outdated policy and, too often, that engagement is requested by the Crown with no resourcing or koha given in exchange for the time and knowledge freely given by Māori, particularly when it comes to writing submissions.

To help support our communities to ensure that their voices are heard, Te Tira Whakamātaki endeavours to freely share our policy resources and responses to proposed environmental policy on this page, so that any of our community members may take them as a starting point for their own response or to sign their name to if they agree with our position.

These policy submissions are free to use and we encourage you to take them and make them your own. They are categorised into past and open submissions (which can be used on bills that are currently open for consultation)

Kia kaha.

Submission on the proposed content of the first National Conservation Policy Statement

10 August 2026