More Coast park inquiries

Press, 28 March 1979, Page 2

More Coast park inquiries

Wellington reporter Further inquiries into the proposal for a national park j status for Crown-owned land in the Paparoa-Punakaiki area of the West Coast have been commissioned by the] National- Parks Authority. After obtaining the infer-] niation the authority will it- j seif inspect the area before! making its recommendations ] to the Minister of Lands (Mr V. S. Young).

The authority had wanted; 0 wait until the proposals• of the Officials Committee! on West Coast Reserves, set; up by the Government last! August and due to report! this week, were known. I The Lands and Survey De-; partment. in consultation i with the Forest Service,) would seek to obtain and) analyse the information \ from the officials committee! before making an inspection.! said the chairman of the) National Parks Authority] (Mr N. S. Coad). Information would also be sought on what the alternative to national parks status; was likely to be before theauthority made its recoin-; mendations, he said. ‘in the meantime, the;

authority is recommending; that no further commitments be made affecting the balance of the Crown-owned areas in the Paparoa-Puna- ' kaiki region until it is able i to put forward its views on whether national park status ) is justified,” Mr Coad said. Mr Young has been urged by the conservation group, ; i the Native Forests Action [; Council, to "keep gangs out,” in view of the authority’s recommendation. )’