22 May 2018

A ceremony today celebrates the landmark addition to the joint management agreement (JMA) between the Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board and Waikato Regional Council, which will see the parties working closely together over Taupō Waters.

Taupō Waters includes Lake Taupō and the tributaries flowing into and out of the lake. Previously the JMA solely addressed the upper Waikato River catchment.

Waikato Regional Council and Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board are pleased that Taupō Waters is being included in the joint management agreement.

“This milestone is a further step toward realising tino rangatiranga and mana motuhake over our taonga tuku iho,” said Topia Rameka, chief executive of Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board.

Waikato Regional Council chief executive Vaughan Payne said the natural resources under the umbrella of Taupō Waters would benefit from the new co-management arrangement.

“We have seen the value of the inter-generational vision that Ngāti Tūwharetoa brings to the council’s decision making, including their extensive experience and knowledge of freshwater resources, which are some of our region’s most significant taonga.”

The small ceremony by the JMA committee is being held at Waikato Regional Council chambers today at 11.45am.

The agreement sets out how the regional council and the trust board will work together when carrying out specific legislative duties and functions, including exercising powers under the Resource Management Act.

Waikato Regional Council and Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board have also agreed to develop a framework over the next 18 months. This framework will consider transfer of duties, functions and powers pursuant to section 33 of the Resource Management Act.

View the full joint management agreement here: https://www.waikatoregion.govt.nz/TuwharetoaJMA.

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