Māori place names have been restored to the small central North Island town of Benneydale, and a nearby stretch of the North Island Main Trunk railway announced Minister for Land Information Eugenie Sage. Benneydale has been changed to a dual name ‘Maniaiti / Benneydale’ and the main trunk railway between Te Awamutu and Taumarunui, is now named ‘Te Ara-o-Tūrongo’ following a request from Ngāti Maniapoto. “I am pleased to restore official place names which bring to light our history for...

Several of New Zealand’s iconic lakes are getting a helping hand with a significant funding boost to help tackle the spread of aquatic weeds in the lakes said Land Information Minister, Eugenie Sage in Wanaka. “With hundreds of thousands of people visiting our major lakes each year, keeping invasive aquatic weed at bay is essential to ensure they can continue to be enjoyed by generations to come.” “I’m pleased that Budget 2019 has delivered LINZ the first increase to baseline...

Minister for Land Information, Eugenie Sage announced Budget 2019 funding for a satellite-based augmentation system (SBAS) which will help save lives and drive innovation, alongside Minister for Transport, Phil Twyford. “I’m pleased to announce that the Government, alongside Australia, is investing in world leading technology to vastly improve the accuracy of GPS in New Zealand enabling faster and safer helicopter rescues and innovation in a range of emerging technologies,” says Eugenie Sage. “Budget 2019 set aside nearly $2m ($1.99) for...

Poverty Bay’s name is richer with the inclusion of Te Reo in the new name of “Tūranganui-a-Kiwa / Poverty Bay” Minister for Land Information Eugenie Sage announced today. “Tūranganui-a-Kiwa / Poverty Bay” applies only to the bay enclosed by Young Nick’s Head (Te Kuri) and Tuaheni Point, in accordance with the original request by Gisborne District Council.  It does not apply to the wider landscape and region often referred to as Poverty Bay, nor to Gisborne or any other area....

Iconic high country land will be better managed under changes that Land Information Minister Eugenie Sage announced consultation on today. Tenure review is a voluntary process where Crown pastoral land can be sold to a leaseholder and areas with high ecological and recreational value can be returned to full Crown ownership as conservation land. “Tenure review has seen some land protected but also large swathes, 353,000 ha, have been privatised and large areas intensively farmed or subdivided,” Eugenie Sage said....

The Government will end tenure review in the South Island high country, Land Information Minister Eugenie Sage announced today. Tenure review is a voluntary process where Crown pastoral land can be sold to a leaseholder and areas with high ecological and recreational value can be returned to full Crown ownership as conservation land. “Tenure review has resulted in parcels of land being added to the conservation estate, but it has also resulted in more intensive farming and subdivision on the...

The Waitangitaona River on the South Island’s West Coast will have one name but it will be spelt correctly under a decision made by Land Information Minister Eugenie Sage. Te Rūnanga o Makaawhio proposed to the New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa (NZGB) in July 2017 that river be given two names: Waitangitāhuna River downstream from Whataroa and Waitakitahuna-ki-te-Toka upstream, after the original river split in two in a flood in 1967.  After public consultation, Te Rūnanga...

Ethos Environmental has taken out the Supreme Award at the New Zealand Spatial Excellence Awards tonight in Wellington for its use of location-based data to help control pest infestations on Great Barrier Island. Ethos Environmental created an integrated Internet of Things (IoT) Geographic Information System (GIS) to record and analyse rat and feral cat intrusions, report when traps are triggered and monitor biodiversity gains. As a result, Ethos Environmental’s GIS provides a platform for the wider conservation sector to use....

Cutting edge mapping of Tōtaranui /Queen Charlotte Sound seabed will provide new insights into the region’s marine environment, says Land Information Minister, Eugenie Sage. “Nearly 44 hectares of seabed data from the region is now available on request to help scientists, boaties, government agencies, and the public better understand the Sound’s marine environment and physical features within these iconic waters,” said Eugenie Sage. “Queen Charlotte Sound is a very important area for marine farming, a major navigational channel for ferries,...