Tongariro Park budget down $1m

Waimarino Bulletin, Issue 4, 12 August 1988, Page 3

Tongariro Park budget down $1m

Huge budget cuts will this year force the Tongariro National Park into a "standstill" situation.

The park's revenue

will be down by $1 million from last year's $3.1 million. District conservator Paul Green says he has had to slash his costs and programmes. In effect the park will go into mothballs for the financial year ended March 31, 1989. Mr Green told R u - apehu '88 this week that he and his staff

would live in hope of more realistic allocations and revenue after April next year. In the meantime the park will simply conduct a holding exercise for the current year. Mr Green said this when commenting on the controversy over charges for ski demonstrations at Turoa and Whakapapa Skifields. The Department o f Conservation is levying ski wholesalers and retailers $200 p e r demonstration. The money will be split 50:50 with the skifield operator. The skiing industry is protesting the charges and is to take up its argument through the New Zealand Ski Industry Federation and the New Zealand Ski Council. Mr Green said Government directives to the Department of Conservation were the cause of the cutbacks. The Tongariro National Park's grant has been reduced from $2.3 million to $900,000. In addition, the park's revenue target has been increased from $800,000 to $1.2 million. So in total the park's budget is down from $3.1 million last year to $2.1 million. To balance the books Mr Green and his 25 salaried staff have overhauled their yearplan. Among the main moves are: • Deferred maintenance on tracks, huts and facilities. • Reduced hours of opening in some facilities including the

Ohakune Ranger Station which is no longer open at weekends. • Increased charges and fees at facilities such as the Whakapapa Motor Camp and Tokaanu Thermal Hot Pools. • A stop to the building programme at the Whakapapa Ranger Station, including the new auditorium.

• Major cuts to the summer nature programme with only selffunding activities to remain. • A stop to this year's Pinus Contorta eradication flying programme (originally budgeted at about $35,000 this year). • A staff sinking-lid policy where no one who leaves will be replaced. • Sale of five vehicles.

• Hiring of plant and equipment owned by the park. Commenting, M r Green said he had asked salaried staff and wageearners for suggestions on how to save or make money and already about 15 ideas of real value had been put forward. Among the voluntary moves or suggestions are small things like one staff member taking rubbish to the tip after hours instead of

using a contractor at nine dollars a week and another staff member volunteering to clean offices in work hours instead of after work on contract. Mr Green said a number of the deferred programmes such as Pinus Contorta control and some track work would not be set back too much but it was vital that they continued in the 1989-90 financial year.