Access: A Key Focus for Fish & Game

13/05/2026

Written by Maggie Tait

Working to retain and restore access is a key pillar of our work at Fish & Game. Our vision is a New Zealand where freshwater habitats – including wetlands – and species flourish, where hunting and fishing traditions thrive, and all Kiwis enjoy access to sustainable wild fish and game resources.

It's not widely known, but we maintain over 3000 access points for angling and game bird hunting around the country. We work with private landowners who do a huge community service by providing much of the access to angling and game bird hunting sites around the country.

A recent court decision confirmed landowners aren't liable for recreational health and safety. This is good news for negotiating recreational access and for assuring landowners that they will not be liable.

While that was a positive development, it's a constant battle fighting for our vision, and it's one we can't achieve alone – we need our anglers and hunters to stand with us as we continue to advocate for access to that quiet fishing spot or the backwater that ducks love to frequent.

What's the Problem?

Access to our rivers, lakes, wetlands, and hunting grounds is quietly being eroded.

Access rules. It's particularly challenging for game bird hunting with restrictions on vehicle access, carrying firearms or being allowed to bring game bird hunting dogs.
New housing or tracks located too close to traditional hunting areas will reduce the game bird hunting recreation in the location.
'Exclusive capture' whereby landowners only allow paying clients to fish or hunt, giving the impression they own the sports fish or game bird resource. This often results in Kiwis not getting access to fishing or game bird hunting resources.
The provisions in the Resource Management Reform for access and recreation have been reduced. The goals need to explicitly recognise recreation, enhance access to natural environments and protect the habitats that support trout, salmon, and game birds. Wetland provisions are uncertain, and there is the option to not provide esplanade reserves as part of subdivisions.

Paper Roads, Locked Gates, and Lost Tracks

Ever heard of a 'paper road'? It's an Unformed Legal Road which is marked on a map but might be just a grassy track or a fence line with no formed structure on the ground. These 'roads' are public land, and they're often the only legal way to get to a river, lake, or wetland, and we don't want them closed.

The problem is that some local authorities or landowners put gates, locks, or fences across them, and councils do not always carry out their enforcement role, which means the public loses out. We think other agencies should be able to remove illegal locked gates. We want to be alerted if a council is thinking about closing a road that provides access to a waterbody. Walking Access Maps shows where these URLs are located. Scan the QR code to explore some really useful mapping resources.

Overseas Land Purchases – A Missed Opportunity

When overseas buyers purchase sensitive land in New Zealand, in the past they have offered public access as part of the agreement to allow them to buy the property. This was a great way to maintain existing or create new access to fishing and hunting spots. This mechanism has also provided access to the coast.

In mid-2024, a ministerial directive changed this, with access now considered a 'secondary' benefit. The result has been no new public access through overseas land purchases in the past year. We think that needs to change back.

We also want to see new access locked in with easements rather than access agreements.

Keeping Access in Settlements and Leases

Some access arrangements have been lost or eroded through Treaty Settlement agreements. Future agreements should strive to retain existing public access.

Agreements such as for Crown Pastoral Leases in the high country often require new public easements to rivers, lakes, and wetlands, but the appropriate provisions aren't being used. There are legal mechanisms that can be used to create new access that aren't being utilised.

Use it or Lose it

Here's a crazy fact: much of public access over private land is not visible on digital maps as the information has not been digitised yet. This access is already legally secured, but you can't see it on any map or app. These records are still sitting in old paper survey files, and we need to get this information digitised as a priority by LINZ.

What We're Pushing For

We're asking government and councils to:

Keep all the current access protections in law and provide free public access.
Talk to us before selling land, stopping a road, or approving a project that could cut off hunting or fishing access.
Restore provisions that provide for overseas land purchases to include new public access easements where waterbodies are located on site or adjacent.
Digitally map all the public access we already have over private land.
Use existing laws to create new access to rivers, lakes, and wetlands, including keeping recreational values, access and protections of waterbody provisions in the Natural Environment bill and Planning bill in Resource Management reform.
Stop councils from closing, banning vehicles or dogs on paper roads without an exceptional reason.
Public access retained as part of Treaty Settlement conditions.

The Fish & Game website has information on access in your region on the access maps tab and in the regional information or pamphlets at their office. If you discover a change in access, i.e., a locked gate over an unformed legal road, please get in touch with us (and the local authority who needs to do enforcement work).

Why it Matters

Hunting and fishing aren't just hobbies; they're part of who we are as New Zealanders. Anglers and hunters put in thousands of volunteer hours every year restoring habitats, controlling pests, and looking after our waterways.

But once public access is gone, it's almost impossible to get back.

Continued public access to New Zealand's lakes, rivers, streams and wetlands is vital for the future of our fishing and hunting. Let's work together to ensure that future generations enjoy the same freedom to hunt, fish and experience these natural places the same way we are able to enjoy them today.

Disclaimer:

The information presented in these news items is based on the context and regulations in place at the time of publication. Please note that some articles may include reference to laws and regulatory standards that have since changed. For the most current and accurate information please check our Fishing Licences & Regulations pages or our Hunting Licences & Regulations pages.