National wild animal recovery operations
You need a WARO concession for deer, pig, goat and chamois carcass recovery and the live capture of deer, pig and goat.

Wild Animal Recovery Operations data

Information about Wild Animal Recovery Operations (WARO) has been made publicly available for the first time. This supports greater transparency around where commercial recovery of wild animals (mostly deer) is taking place across New Zealand.

WARO summary data 

WARO concessions

When and why a WARO concession is needed:

  • a WARO concession is needed any time an aircraft is used commercially to search for, shoot or recover wild animals (or parts of wild animals) on public conservation land
  • wild animals like deer are present throughout the country with significant numbers in some places
  • New Zealand’s native plants and habitats are being eaten and damaged by wild animals, and the function of many ecosystems are being threatened
  • WARO, alongside recreational hunting and government operations, can play a role in managing deer and other wild animals on public conservation land.

A WARO concession is available for:

  • the supply of deer, pig, goat and chamois to Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) approved processors, and
  • live capture of the same wild animals (excluding chamois) to be placed on authorised properties.

Applicants must:

  • have a current supply contract with an approved processor, or a marketing entity that has a contract for processing carcasses with a MPI approved processor, and 
  • meet the MPI requirements for these activities. 

National WARO concessions exclude the carriage of either recreational hunters or fare paying passengers. See aerially assisted trophy hunting (AATH) or aircraft activities for more information.

Pre-application advice

Applying for a concession for the first time can be a little tricky. To ensure your application goes smoothly, contact the staff in our Hokitika office. We’ll help you to:

  • Understand the concession you will need to apply for.
  • Navigate our statutory planning documents, so you can consider whether the activity you wish to undertake is consistent with them.
  • Understand DOC’s responsibility to give effect to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi, which requires consultation with Treaty Partners on most applications. If you wish, DOC can help you contact the local iwi, hapū, and whānau to assess whether your proposed activity will have any cultural effects. Often this consultation can enhance the activity you are considering.

Type of WARO concession

The National WARO concessions on offer cover the recovery and capture of the following wild animals:

North Island: deer, pig and goat carcass recovery plus live capture of deer, pig and goat.

South Island: deer, pig chamois and goat carcass recovery and live capture of deer.

If you wish to apply for any other type of wild animal recovery operation contact our Christchurch office.

Apply for your concession

If your application is approved we will send you a contract which you must sign and return before proceeding with your activity.

Fees

We charge an application processing fee based on the time required to process your application and staff hourly charge-out rates. Complex applications cost more as they take longer to process.

After you apply, we will assign your application to a processing category that reflects its complexity. Each category has a minimum processing fee.

Learn more about processing categories and minimum fees

If you seek pre-application advice, we can tell you the category and minimum processing fee that will most likely apply to your application. We will confirm your minimum processing fee once your application is accepted and assigned to a processing category. If we expect your processing fee to exceed the minimum fee, we will give you a non-binding fee estimate before we start work.

We will usually invoice your fee after processing is complete. If you withdraw your application, you will be charged for any work already done.

If your application is approved, ongoing permission fees may apply.

Locations for the national WARO concession

Note: These 2023 maps are for information purposes only. They can only be used when permits are formally accepted by operators. Electronic GPX files will be made available to operators for use in helicopters .

Index map (PDF, 2263K)