Day 3 - Presented to Sustainable Summits 2016 Mike Davies: Aoraki – Mount Cook National Park Plan

1. Managing a mountain park in
a dynamic context

2. 2
Natural / Human History of
Aoraki / Mt Cook National Park
– an overview
Welcome to Aoraki/Mt Cook
• Managing a mountain park in a
dynamic context
– A sustainability story around this
context
• Themes
• Places
• Our critical issues

3. 3
The story
• Gangkhar Puensum
– 7570 m (24,836 ft)
– Highest unclimbed mountain in the world
– Himalayas in Bhutan near the border with China
– Climbing of mountains higher than 6000 m prohibited
since 1994
• Spiritual significance of mountains and the role that plays
in management. Many things to many people.
• A mountain holiday. Take visitors away from their normal
lives. Achieving DOC Vision and in particular NZers and
our visitors are enriched by outdoor experiences
• Defines how we will manage this place into the future.
Can DOC be more agile to keep up in an ever changing
world – the dynamic context

4. 4
Themes
Associations with this place through time
• Spiritual
– Ngai Tahu
– Climbers
– Visitors
• Historical
– Ngai Tahu
– Pastoralism
– Tourism
• Management
– Conservation
– Ngai Tahu Deed of Settlement
• Geological/Glacial

5. 5
Ngai Tahu
• Aoraki most sacred of ancestors
• Provides sense of communal identify, solidarity and
purpose
• Significant to their creation story and spiritual association
• Topuni - a cloak of protection over Aoraki.
• Defines their deep spiritual association with this place

6. 6
Geological/glacial theme
• 80,000 million years ago
– Gondwanaland
– Alpine fault
– Glaciers
– Erosion
• Defines today’s
access/opportunities and values

7. 7
Historic theme – pastoralism to
tourism
• 1840
– Treaty of Waitangi
• 1848
– Kemp Purchase
• 1858
– Glentanner Run
• 1865
– Birch Hill Run
• 1884
– First ranger and Hermitage

8. 8
Historic theme - tourism
• 1882
– Climbing begins
• 1886
– First passenger service
• 1890
– Ball Hut
• 1894:
– Aoraki /Mt Cook climbed
• 1895
– Government buys Hermitage

9. 9
Historic theme – tourism to
management
• 1930
– First plane landing
• 1953
– Park formed
• 1955
– First ski plane landings
• 1987
– DOC created
• 1986/1990
– Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site
• 1998
– Ngai Tahu Deed of Settlement
• 2016
– Management Plan review
• Defines today’s critical issues for management

10. 10
Facts
• 70,000ha - 25 summits over 3000m - Aoraki/Mt Cook-
3754m – climbing proving ground
• Estimated over 500,000 visitors/annum
• $2.6 million expenditure
• $1.55 million revenue plus concession revenue
• $15 million capital investment since 2010

11. 11
Places – defined by access

12. 12
Places
Places Accessibility Demand Impacts
High alpine Low and
decreasing
Static tending
to decline
Managed but
need for
greater
efficiency /new
approaches
Subalpine Medium and
increasing
High and
growing
Holding the
line. Need new
approaches
Village High High and
growing
Holding the
line. Need new
approaches

13. 13
High alpine and Village places

14. 14
Village place
Places Accessibility Demand Impacts
Village High High and
growing
Holding the
line. Need new
approaches
• Village = no skills required
• Gateway to the Park. Exceed 500,000 visitors/annum . Approx
15% growth
• Village short walks
• Visitor Centre – 125,000/annum. Cost $372,000 Revenue
$350,000. Managing visitor information and mitigating risk
• Visitor accommodation = 1400/night. Over 90% occupancy
during peak. Reduction in shoulder season. Staff = 300
• Local body operation. Infrastructure services.
– Cost $860,000 Revenue $860,000 – DOC contribution approx 9% ($70,000)
Major contribution AMCAVL 77%
– Solid waste = 36% of the cost. Increase of 10% on last year.

15. 15
Village place
Places Accessibility Demand Impacts
Village High High and
growing
Holding the
line. Need new
approaches
• Visitor growth = increasing pressure on infrastructure
services
• Increased demand for visitor and staff accommodation
• Increased pressure on car parking. Large campervans
• More demand for concessions – tourism business
opportunities

16. 16
High alpine place
Places Accessibility Demand Impacts
High alpine Low and
decreasing
Static tending
to decline
Managed but
need for
greater
efficiency /new
approaches
• High alpine - Alpine skills required
• Alpine Huts - Cost $120,800 Revenue $80,000
– 8 DOC range from Kelman (22) 1086 bednights/annum to Empress (12) - 9
– NZAC Murchison (193)
– Lost Gardiner Hut - 53 to rock avalanche
– Near miss Plateau Hut (30) - 815. Cost $900,000 in 2004
• Search and Rescue programme - $193,000. Changing season and responses
• Alpine Huts – static to decreasing demand and high costs – over 80%
helicopter costs for gas/waste management. Need for greater efficiency or
new approaches in waste management. Compliance costs.

17. 17
Subalpine place

18. 18
Sub alpine place
Places Accessibility Demand Impacts
Sub alpine Medium and
increasing
High and
growing
Holding the
line. Need new
approaches
• Sub alpine area - lesser skills required
• Destination Huts
– Mueller (30) – 3113 bed nights/annum. Cost $59,000 Revenue $112,000.
Cost $700,000 in 2004
– Ball Shelter (4) - 398. Cost $90,000 in 2010
• Hunters/Climbers Huts – low use/low return
– Liebig (DOC) – 22. Godley (NZAC)/Onslow (NZDA)
• Campground - 26,000 Revenue $245,000
• Hooker Track - 72,000. Developed to manage visitor risk. Cost $1.8 million to
develop
• Sealing Tasman Valley Road. Cost $2.2 million to develop
• Mueller Hut/Campground/Hooker track – increasing demand = increased
revenue and cost. Big pressure on waste management. New approaches to
management

19. 19
Major critical issues for the future
• In the context of the Aoraki/Mount Cook
National Park Management Plan review and the
differing values that it holds the two major
critical issues for management are likely to be:
– How to respond to climate change and its
consequences for maintaining opportunities
and facilities for recreation, and
– How to manage the projected increase in
visitor numbers and the demands this will
place on the Park and those facilities

20. 20
Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park
Management Plan review
• Role of plan as:
– resolution of conflicts between protection of values and use
of area
– guidance for the assessment of concessions applications
– providing a monitoring framework for implementation,
reporting and review of policies and outcomes
– working document to guide decision making for operations
management

21. 21
Specific critical issues
• How to review management of Aoraki/Mount Cook that recognizes the
values that people have for this place?
• How to manage in an era of climate change that is bringing about rapid
change in the alpine environment?
• How to make wise investment decisions that reflect demand and in a
context of competing demands/values?
• How to enrich visitors outdoor experiences by addressing quality and
safety?
• How to be more agile in our operations to respond to changing trends?
• How to maximise revenue opportunities based on the visitor growth
being experienced?
• What if visitor numbers exceed our ability to provide facilities?
• How to manage visitor growth with the increased pressure on existing
infrastructure and services?
• How to manage existing and new concession applications in a context
of visitor growth?
• How to fund increased operating costs incurred in managing increased
use?
• How to communicate critical visitor and safety information to visitors in
a social media dominated environment?

22. 22
Summary
• The story about this place and it management issues in a
context of the different values to different people
• How does Ngai Tahu and DOC write a plan for this place
• How can you contribute and help to shape this plan

23. 23
Questions?