Northland Exploration Plans Fly In The Face Says Rūnanga

Te Rūnanga A Iwi O Ngāpuhi Chair Raniera Tau said plans by the government to continue mining exploration in parts of the Far North flies in the face of Ngāpuhi efforts to settle Treaty grievances.

“Like the Whangarei District Council who is selling off land, this is the Crown emptying their cupboards before Ngāpuhi has had their claims considered,” said Mr Tau.

“No one’s talked to us about it [mining] and it would appear the government has found some willing allies in the local authorities.”

Mr Tau said over a third of the land in the Far North was part of the conservation estate.

He said while mining could lead to jobs the downstream impact on the environment would be disastrous and long term.

“For Māori that means health epidemics like norovirus in small, isolated communities where people are quite close and dependent on local waterways and the environment for their sustenance. This also impacts on our marae who are reliant on harvesting kaimoana

“Once the miners have taken what they want we’ll be left with an unsustainable economy that could take years to repair.

“This is Ngāpuhi whenua, our land, and the government needs to settle our grievances before it creates new ones by creating a mining carte blanche,” he said.

ENDS

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