Strategic Goal 4: Expert Property Management

Our objective

Property management that balances economic, social and environmental outcomes.

Contribution to end outcomes

Certainty of New Zealand's property rights and interests.

Best use of Crown assets.

Contribution to intermediate outcomes

An effective system for defining and transacting land.

Effective and efficient management of Crown land and liabilities.

Overseas Investment Office database

Why the Overseas Investment Office database was a priority

The Overseas Investment Office, a team within LINZ, administers the Overseas Investment Act 2005, which both encourages ongoing economic growth through investment and protects New Zealand's unique assets and resources.

When assessing overseas applications on the basis of benefit to the whole of New Zealand, this legislation requires the Overseas Investment Office to:

• seek assurance on the accuracy of information received from applicants
• seek evidence to support the application, and verify that information with others knowledgeable about the application
• advise ministers on investment proposals, and
• monitor compliance with conditions of approval, consent or exemptions granted.

The Overseas Investment Office also compiles and keeps records on applications.

Undertaking this activity effectively requires a focus on ensuring that LINZ has the appropriate capability, processes and systems. To assist with this, LINZ instigated the development of a new database application to allow easier recording and monitoring of information.

The database will improve the accuracy of statistical reports on foreign direct investment, increase the efficiency of processing applications, enable better workflow management, and improve the ability to advise applicants of the status of their applications. It will also support effective governance of overseas investment activities.

The activities we said we would undertake in 2007/08

• Develop, test and implement a new database.

What we have achieved

By the end of June 2008, the system and database were fully developed and in the final stages of user acceptance testing. LINZ planned a go-live date of early August 2008 and has been migrating data into the new database.

Treaty of Waitangi settlements

Why Treaty settlements were a priority

The Government has set an all-of-government objective to settle all Treaty of Waitangi claims by 2020.

Treaty settlement milestones are set by the Minister of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations on advice from the Office of Treaty Settlements. Typically, LINZ is involved in four milestones during a Treaty settlement:

• agreement in principle (non-binding)
• deed of settlement (binding)
• legislation to authorise various parts of the settlement to happen, and
• settlement date.

Historically, each of the first three milestones has had a duration in excess of one year.

LINZ is a major contributor to the achievement of these milestones:

• as vendor agency, offering suitable LINZ properties and providing advice, disclosure, valuation, negotiation, consultation, survey and title, for Crown forest and other land as commercial and cultural redress
• as technical land transaction experts, providing policy advice and feedback on settlement documentation, Bills and draft Cabinet papers
• as a regulator, providing expert advice and regulatory decisions on rights of first refusal and removal of resumptive memorials¹⁶
• as the place name regulator through the New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa, processing place name changes as cultural redress, and
• as processor and keeper of survey and title registers, recording the end result of property-related redress.

What we have achieved

To streamline and accelerate the process, the Minister of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations directed that work to develop the deed of settlement, and work to develop the supporting legislation, be done concurrently for two major settlements. The Minister also directed that these milestones be accomplished in six months or less. As a result, LINZ has contracted timelines and managed milestones in parallel to comply with the significant increase in the pace of settlements. The Central North Island Collective Deed of Settlement and four agreements in principle were signed during the year, but no settlement date milestones were reached.¹⁷

LINZ has provided property information, policy and technical advice, disclosure, valuation, negotiation of transfer values, consultation, and survey, for up to 41 Crown forest licensed properties and up to 38 other LINZ properties offered for commercial and cultural redress (across 19 Treaty of Waitangi settlements underway at 30 June 2008).

Crown property review

LINZ reviewed and implemented a new structure for managing the Crown property we administer. A key feature of the review was that teams managing the South Island high country Tenure Review programme and pastoral leases and licences were consolidated into a dedicated pastoral unit based in Christchurch.

Establishment of this dedicated team allows LINZ to better manage decision-making processes, outcomes, knowledge, and information and data relating to pastoral lease and licence management. The goal is to ensure that LINZ maintains direct oversight and control of activities on Crown pastoral land. The unit is taking a proactive approach to pastoral lease management: taking on a greater role in the day-to-day administration of pastoral leases and licences so that the rights of both lessor and lessee are understood and complied with. Direct relationships with lessees are being re-established, and our external service provider model has been revised to reflect our new approach in this area.

Administration of the balance of LINZ's Crown property assets under the revised structure lies with a team that focuses on:

• acquisition
• Overseas Investment Office support
• property management
• biosecurity
• process and information
• Crown forest management
• Treaty of Waitangi activities, and
• disposals and liabilities.

The review identified the need for a specialist resource to improve LINZ's overall Crown property management processes and property information system. An appointment has been made, and work on process enhancement is underway. Work has also begun on an upgrade of LINZ's property information system. This upgrade will enable easier information provision on decisions and communication to stakeholders. The upgrade is due to be implemented in 2009/10.

Biosecurity

The Biosecurity Act 1993 covers pre-border and border activity, surveillance, incursion response and eradication, and pest management. The provisions within the Biosecurity Act that are relevant to LINZ relate to regional pest management strategies. We have a number of opportunities to achieve biosecurity outcomes on the Crown-owned land that we manage and in particular to reduce damage caused by harmful weeds and pests. LINZ works with other government agencies and territorial authorities on biosecurity issues.

What we have achieved

The following initiatives contributed to our biosecurity responsibilities:

South Island wilding pines

LINZ has been working with stakeholders in the South Island to control the spread of wilding pines. At Lake Pukaki, LINZ has successfully controlled large areas of wilding pines on the eastern shoreline, and has commenced control works on the western shoreline.

In Southland, LINZ continues to support the Mid-Dome Wilding Trees Charitable Trust. The Trust was set up to prevent further spread of wilding pines onto neighbouring lands, where they threaten production and biodiversity. Mid-Dome is a major source of wilding pine seed in the region.

LINZ is also a signatory to the Wilding Conifer Research Collaboration Agreement. The purpose of the agreement is to confirm funding and resourcing for research into controlling South Island wilding pines.

Southland Interagency Group

LINZ continued our involvement in the Southland Interagency Group, which is working to clear invasive weeds such as willow, gorse and broom in some of the Southland rivers.

Lake Karapiro

An intensive aquatic weed management programme to control the introduced invasive weed hornwort in Lake Karapiro began in May 2007. The weed control is part of a co-ordinated effort between LINZ, Waipa District Council and Environment Waikato to manage Lake Karapiro, its facilities and supporting infrastructure in preparation for the World Rowing Championships, to be held at the lake in 2010. Large areas of hornwort were successfully controlled during 2007/08, and LINZ will continue this work in the build-up to the World Championships to ensure the weed does not create problems for competitors.

Lake Wanaka

Significant progress is being made in controlling the weed lagarosiphon (oxygen weed) in Lake Wanaka. In 2005, the 10-year Lagarosiphon Management Plan for Lake Wanaka was implemented to reduce the amount of weed and prevent its spreading throughout Lake Wanaka and to nearby lakes. The work carried out in 2007/08 complemented control works carried out during the previous year.

The latest report from NIWA, which is contracted to undertake independent monitoring in the lake, showed a great reduction in the weed biomass and colonies. In some areas, the weed has been completely removed.

Tenure Review

Ten substantive Tenure Review proposals were negotiated with pastoral leaseholders during 2007/08, designating 53,516 hectares (72%) of pastoral lease land to be returned to full Crown ownership for conservation management and 20,871 hectares (28%) to be freeholded to former leaseholders.

LINZ also purchased one pastoral lease for conservation purposes, Twinburn, which comprises 7,861 hectares. This land has been returned to full Crown ownership and control.

Agreed substantive proposals were implemented (survey, fencing, freehold title issued, land transferred to the Department of Conservation) for 12 pastoral leases.

16 A resumptive memorial is a notation on the title of land transferred by the Crown to a State-owned enterprise that gives the Crown the right to repurchase the land at current market value in the event that that land is required to settle a Treaty of Waitangi claim.

17 Settlement dates are not under LINZ’s control.