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NZDA Policy on Game and Game Management

The policy of the New Zealand Deerstalkers Association Incorporated shall be:

  1. To protect the principle of public ownership of wildlife generally and to prevent the creation of privileged hunting and/or exclusive access to the publicly owned fish and wildlife assets of New Zealand.
  2. Participate in the management of New Zealand’s wild animals in numbers consistent with adequate conservation of water, soil and vegetation resources of their habitat on public land.
  3. To encourage and promote data collection and research by which the success of game management and other activities may be evaluated and where possible to publish the results.
  4. To protect the uniqueness of the ‘at risk’ herds, to oppose their commercial exploitation and upholding Association Policy of recreational hunting as the principal method of animal control.
  5. To promote and secure on behalf of all New Zealanders, recreational hunting areas on public lands over which permits for commercial hunting of any kind may not be issued.
  6. Consult with land managers on Game Management policies at both national and local levels.
  7. Total opposition to the illegal release of game animals.
  8. To encourage the development of skills in recreational hunting by national promotion of the HUNTS programme.

This Policy was ratified most recently by annual conferences up to and including the 2017 Conference.