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4.3 Visual Impacts of Forestry
Authors: B HockPublication: NZIF Forestry Handbook, Volume Section 4 – Forests and the environment, pp 3, Dec 2023
Publisher: New Zealand Institute of Forestry
Abstract: Forestry operations, particularly establishment and harvest operations, may change the scenic impact of a landscape significantly. This can elicit a negative public response, particularly when the change is perceived as sudden, unexpected, dramatic and/or careless. There is a large public concern about environmental quality in New Zealand and about supporting the large tourism industry with its expectations of scenic beauty. The Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) emphasises the need to avoid or minimise negative effects, including the loss of visual amenity, and the need to protect outstanding landscapes. The pressure for minimising loss of visual amenities may be particularly high near cities and lifestyle blocks, along main public transport routes (especially tourist routes), along coastlines and lakes, and around scenic lookouts.