UPDATES
7 May 2026 – Changes to the National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry (NES-CF)
In 2025, the Government consulted on proposed changes to national direction instruments as part of its wider reform of the resource management system. This included proposed changes to the NES-CF to improve efficiency in forestry operations and make the regulations clearer. Changes made as a result of this consultation come into force on 4 June 2026.
On this page
What the Slash Mobilisation Risk Assessment is for
The National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry (NES‑CF) set rules for how forestry slash must be managed during forestry activities.
Slash is tree waste left behind after activities like pruning, thinning, and harvesting. In the right place, slash protects soil against surface erosion and provides food and habitat for birds and insects and organic material for the new forest crop. In the wrong place, slash is at risk of being mobilised and transported off the forest site, where it can cause damage.
The Slash Mobilisation Risk Assessment (SMRA) is a screening tool that applies to slash risk on the cutover (the area of land that has been harvested). It is used to assess the risk that forestry slash could move off the cutover as the result of small landslides, which are normally triggered by intense or sustained rainfall. The assessment is done as part of harvest planning and helps make sure slash risks are identified early so they can be managed appropriately.
What the assessment doesn't cover
The SMRA focuses only on slash risk on the cutover. Slash risks on landings, and in or around waterways, are managed separately as part of the harvesting conditions as a permitted activity under the NES-CF. Read more about how to meet these conditions in the guidance:
National Environmental Standards for Plantation Forestry guidance
The SMRA is a screening tool, not a technical model or a prediction of landslides or debris flows.
When to do the assessment
From 4 June 2026 you must complete a SMRA before you harvest, if you plan to harvest on:
- orange zone Erosion Susceptibility Classification (ESC) land, or
- red zone ESC land that is not Land Use Capability class 8e, where the harvesting area is no more than 2 hectares in any 3 month period.
Identify the erosion category of land using the ESC tool:
Erosion Susceptibility Classification
If a SMRA is needed, answers to the questions in each step of the assessment must be included in the harvesting plan.
When a resource consent is needed
If the SMRA finds cutover slopes with high mobilisation risk, harvesting cannot proceed as a permitted activity. A controlled activity resource consent is needed.
How to do the assessment
The SMRA is a step by step assessment of the cutover. Each step asks a yes or no question about site conditions. Download the assessment below:
Slash Mobilisation Risk Assessment [PDF, 391 KB]
Find out more
- Slash risk management handbook [PDF, 5.6 MB]
- Erosion processes for forest and harvest planning [PDF, 5.3 MB]
Other NES-CF tools
Who to contact
If you have questions about the NES-CF, contact Te Uru Rākau – New Zealand Forest Service:
- email nes-cf@mpi.govt.nz
- phone 0800 008 333.
