Transporting items to the Hauraki Gulf islands

Living on and visiting the islands involves a joint responsibility to ensure pests that harm native wildlife are not mistakenly carried across in personal or commercial goods, including the trailer or vehicle carrying the items.

It is important everything is checked and free from pests.

Travelling in a controlled area

The Hauraki Gulf is protected and many of the islands are pest free. This means there are controls in place to stop the movement of pests onto islands or from one island to another within the controlled area.

You may be liable for a penalty if found to be carrying pests listed in Schedule 2 of the Hauraki Gulf Controlled Area Notice 2020.

Tips for transporting items

See our checklist of some of the riskiest items to move within the Hauraki Gulf Controlled Area, along with some simple actions you can take to make them less of a risk.

​Before travelling or transportation

• Check for pests (ants, rats, skinks and their eggs).
• Remove soil, seeds and plant material.
• Check and clean all machinery/bikes/kayaks and dirty diggers.
• Clean and dry all fishing gear.
• Consider buying goods locally on the islands.
• Consider leaving pets at home.
• Check, clean gear and close all containers.
• Email us at biosecurity@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz and we will assess if you need an inspection (e.g. bulk plants or large earth-moving equipment).

Moving a building

Buildings must be inspected and approval obtained from Auckland Council before transportation to the Gulf islands.

This includes prefabricated or flat-packed buildings, tiny homes and shipping containers used as a building or for storage. We require 10 working days’ notice to book an inspection.

Email us at biosecurity@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz to book an inspection.

Moving kauri

Untreated kauri plant material cannot be moved within the controlled area unless to dispose of the material at an approved Auckland Council containment landfill.

See kauri dieback programme for more information.

Moving rubble, rocks, aggregate and gravel

These materials can transport:

• kauri dieback
• weeds, like woolly nightshade and moth plant
• pest ants and plague skinks that commonly lay their eggs in aggregate.

This material must be checked or approved by an inspector or authorised person. A check of the source site may be required before these risky items may enter the Hauraki Gulf Controlled Area.

In general, we do not want rock from quarries within kauri catchments or very weedy areas. Any more than a trailer load of rocks, rubble, aggregate or gravel should be checked at the source and, where applicable, included in any resource consent conditions for roading projects.

If you have questions on transporting goods or what to look for, contact us on 09 301 0101.

Moving items to DOC-managed islands

Check with the Department of Conservation (DOC) about any restrictions that apply to visiting or moving items to islands it manages.

Contact DOC at 0800 362 468 or find out more about visiting pest free islands.