The idea of a national council to manage game animals has partial support from a Wanganui hunter while it has conservationists deeply worried.
Legislation for a new 18-member New Zealand Game Council was introduced to Parliament last month. The council would manage deer, pigs, thar and chamois.
A discussion paper on the proposal says the Conservation Department can't realise the recreational and commercial potential of introduced animals like deer and wild pigs because it is tasked to eradicate or control them on the conservation estate.
The Game Council would include DoC representatives, as well as commercial and recreational hunters and farmers. It would strike a balance between protecting the environment and making the most of the recreational and commercial opportunities offered by wild game animals.
It would cost $850,000 to run, have 17 members and a chair, and be based in Wellington initially.
Wanganui Hunters & Stalkers Club president Gareth Watson said the new body was a good idea - but he was worried about who was going to pay for it.
He had noticed on investigation that it would have limited or no Government funding.
"It's a good concept, but someone has got to pay for it and it's going to come back on the hunters. My biggest concern is that the fees will always go up," he said.
He was also worried more controls could be imposed on where and when people could hunt deer and pigs.
"At the moment recreational hunters are controlling pest species on conservation land. You can get a free permit for a year, and go whenever you like."
He said deer numbers were rising, and hunters would want to control them because overpopulation made for inferior animals.
The Wellington head office also worried him. He said Wanganui hunters found it convenient to talk to DoC staff in their own city.
Retired DoC staff member Ridgway Lythgoe is totally against the Game Council idea. He said it would be inefficient to take animal control away from DoC and give it to another agency working on conservation land.
"DoC has all these cuts and now they're setting up another agency who will say what happens on DoC estate."
A game council with hunters as representatives would work to maintain deer and pig populations, he said.
"They will want to keep a breeding population going." Green Party conservation spokesman Kevin Hague said neither the Minister of Conservation nor any other Government agency supported the creation of the new body. The legislation is supported by Peter Dunne and its introduction to Parliament is linked with his support for both the present National Government and the former Labour one.