Forestry Industry – External Influence Over Public Communications and Decision‑Making
Nigel Gray made this Official Information request to Hawke's Bay Regional Council
Currently waiting for a response from Hawke's Bay Regional Council, they must respond promptly and normally no later than (details and exceptions).
From: Nigel Gray
Dear Hawke's Bay Regional Council,
Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request the following information for the period 1 January 2021 – present.
1. Briefings and Key Messages
Copies of any briefings, talking points, or key‑message documents prepared for senior leadership or elected officials that relate to:
forestry slash events
erosion or sedimentation linked to forestry
public communications about forestry impacts
2. Communications Strategy and Perception Management
Copies of any communications plans or strategy documents that include reference to:
“stakeholder messaging”
“public perception”
“communications risks”
“industry engagement”
…where these terms relate to forestry or forestry‑related environmental impacts.
3. External Input Into Public Statements (Refined Clause)
Copies of any final versions of public statements (including press releases, website updates, advisories, or social media posts) relating to forestry that were reviewed, edited, or approved by any external party.
For each such document, please also provide:
a) the name of the external party involved b) the nature of their input (e.g., review, edits, approval) c) the date on which their input occurred
This request does not seek drafts, internal discussions, or emails — only the final published versions and the record of external input.
4. Meetings With Forestry‑Sector Representatives
A list of all meetings held since 1 January 2021 between your agency and:
forestry industry representatives
forestry lobby groups
PR or communications firms acting for forestry interests
the Forest Owners Association
Te Uru Rākau / NZ Forest Service
For each meeting, please provide:
date
attendees
subject or purpose of the meeting
I am not requesting minutes or detailed notes — only the meeting list.
5. Conflict‑of‑Interest Declarations
Copies of any conflict‑of‑interest declarations made by staff involved in:
forestry‑related policy
forestry compliance or enforcement
environmental monitoring relating to forestry
forestry‑related public communications
Format
Please provide all information in digital form. If any part of this request is refused, please provide the grounds for refusal and release all remaining material.
Yours faithfully,
Nigel Gray
From: Hawke's Bay Info
Hawke's Bay Regional Council
Kia ora,
Thank you for getting in touch. Your request (138411) has been received
and one of our team will get back to you within five working days. For all
urgent enquiries, please call 06 835 9200.
Ngā mihi
Customer Experience Team
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From: Hawke's Bay Info
Hawke's Bay Regional Council
Your request (138411) has been updated. To add additional comments, reply
to this email.
Jennah (Hawke's Bay Regional Council)
23 Feb 2026, 08:20 NZDT
Kia ora Nigel,
Thank you for sending this through. We have forwarded this on to the
relevant part of the organisation and they will be in contact.
In the meantime, if you have any other questions, do let us know and we
will be happy to help.
Ngā mihi,
Jennah
Hawke's Bay Regional Council
Nigel Gray
22 Feb 2026, 10:10 NZDT
Caution: This email is from outside of Hawke’s Bay Regional Council.
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on any links or attachments and contact the ServiceDesk immediately.
Dear Hawke's Bay Regional Council,
Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request the following
information for the period 1 January 2021 – present.
1. Briefings and Key Messages
Copies of any briefings, talking points, or key‑message documents prepared
for senior leadership or elected officials that relate to:
forestry slash events
erosion or sedimentation linked to forestry
public communications about forestry impacts
2. Communications Strategy and Perception Management
Copies of any communications plans or strategy documents that include
reference to:
“stakeholder messaging”
“public perception”
“communications risks”
“industry engagement”
…where these terms relate to forestry or forestry‑related environmental
impacts.
3. External Input Into Public Statements (Refined Clause)
Copies of any final versions of public statements (including press
releases, website updates, advisories, or social media posts) relating to
forestry that were reviewed, edited, or approved by any external party.
For each such document, please also provide:
a) the name of the external party involved b) the nature of their input
(e.g., review, edits, approval) c) the date on which their input occurred
This request does not seek drafts, internal discussions, or emails — only
the final published versions and the record of external input.
4. Meetings With Forestry‑Sector Representatives
A list of all meetings held since 1 January 2021 between your agency and:
forestry industry representatives
forestry lobby groups
PR or communications firms acting for forestry interests
the Forest Owners Association
Te Uru Rākau / NZ Forest Service
For each meeting, please provide:
date
attendees
subject or purpose of the meeting
I am not requesting minutes or detailed notes — only the meeting list.
5. Conflict‑of‑Interest Declarations
Copies of any conflict‑of‑interest declarations made by staff involved in:
forestry‑related policy
forestry compliance or enforcement
environmental monitoring relating to forestry
forestry‑related public communications
Format
Please provide all information in digital form. If any part of this
request is refused, please provide the grounds for refusal and release all
remaining material.
Yours faithfully,
Nigel Gray
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From: Governance Team
Hawke's Bay Regional Council
Kia ora Nigel
This email is acknowledgment that Hawke’s Bay Regional Council has
received your LGOIMA request dated 22 February 2026 and will respond with
a decision as soon as practicable, within the statutory timeframe 23 March
2026, being 20 working days after the day your request was received.
Regards
Donna
From: Governance Team
Hawke's Bay Regional Council
Good afternoon Nigel
This email relates to your LGOIMA request dated 23 February 2026. The
Council advises the decision to provide the information we hold in
response to your questions 1, 2, 3 and 5.
However because your Q4 (following) is not specified with due
particularity and is for a significant amount of information requiring
substantial research and collation we ask you to refine it so that we can
provide the most useful and accurate response possible within the scope of
the Act and the capacity of Council resources.
You’ve requested:
4. Meetings With Forestry Sector Representatives - a list of all meetings
since 1 January 2021 between HBRC and:
- forestry industry representatives
- forestry lobby groups
- PR or communications firms acting for forestry interests
- the Forest Owners Association
- Te Uru Rākau / NZ Forest Service
For each meeting, include date, attendees and subject or purpose of the
meeting
Firstly, we need the names of forestry sector representatives, lobby
groups and PR/Comms firms (in line with LGOIMA s10(2) requests shall be
specified with due particularity). Without specifics it is virtually
impossible to find relevant records in Council’s information systems.
Secondly, because HBRC’s two Forestry Compliance Officers have only been
on the job and actively monitoring forestry compliance for 6 months we ask
whether you will agree to shorten the timeframe – for the period from 1
June 2025.
Please note that a search across all of Council’s records for the period
from 1 January 2021 would likely incur a significant charge due to the
substantial research and collation required.
Please respond with your refined Q4 by close of business Friday 13 March
2026.
In the meantime the Council will provide the information for questions 1,
2, 3 and 5 as soon as practicable.
Regards,
Leeanne
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| |Leeanne Hooper |
| |Team Leader Governance |
| |06 835 9200 | 027 253 5993 |
| |----------------------------------------------------------------------|
| |Hawke's Bay Regional Council | Te Kaunihera ā-rohe o Te Matau a Māui |
| |159 Dalton Street, Napier 4110 | [1]hbrc.govt.nz |
| | |
| |Enhancing Our Environment Together | Te Whakapakari Tahi I Tō Tātau |
| |Taiao |
|-+----------------------------------------------------------------------|
| |[2][IMG] [3][IMG] [4][IMG] |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
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From: Nigel Gray
Dear Governance Team,
Good afternoon,
Thank you for your email of 10 March.
I am happy to refine Question 4 to meet the “due particularity” requirement while still capturing the relevant forestry‑sector engagement.
Refined Q4 — Meetings With Forestry‑Sector Representatives
Please provide a list of all meetings held between 1 January 2021 and the present between HBRC (including staff, contractors, or elected members) and any of the following parties:
Named organisations and entities
Forest Owners Association
Te Uru Rākau / New Zealand Forest Service
Pan Pac Forest Products
Ernslaw One
Juken New Zealand (JNL)
PF Olsen
Rayonier / Matariki Forests
Summit Forests
Forest Management NZ
Forest360
Forest Enterprises
Lobby groups, industry bodies, and advocacy organisations
Any forestry‑sector lobby group
Any industry association representing forestry interests
Any entity acting in an advocacy capacity for the forestry sector
PR / communications firms acting for forestry interests
Any PR, communications, or reputation‑management firm engaged by or acting on behalf of forestry companies or forestry‑sector organisations
Information requested for each meeting
For each meeting identified, please provide:
the date
the attendees (names or roles)
the subject or purpose of the meeting
As stated previously, I am not requesting minutes or detailed notes — only the meeting list.
Timeframe
I do not agree to shorten the timeframe. The request remains for 1 January 2021 – present.
If HBRC believes that any part of this refined request would require substantial collation, please identify the specific component(s) and provide the remainder.
Kind regards,
Nigel Gray
Things to do with this request
- Add an annotation (to help the requester or others)
- Download a zip file of all correspondence (note: this contains the same information already available above).

