Te Uri o Hau launches milestone environmental plan

A new environmental plan launched yesterday by Te Uri o Hau marks an historic milestone for the Kaipara hapū’s role in managing its natural and physical resources.

The hapū environmental management plan, which was developed with funding assistance from the Northland Regional Council, sets a clear strategy and direction for how Te Uri o Hau wants to see natural resources in its rohe managed and protected. 

The plan will help to ensure that the hapū’s concerns and interests are better reflected in council planning for the area.

Under the Resource Management Act 1991, councils must take into account any relevant planning document recognised by an iwi authority, such as the Te Uri o Hau plan.

Te Uri o Hau Chairperson Mihi Watene says the new plan – Te Uri o Hau Kaitiakitanga o te Taiao – will give them a stronger voice in central and local government decision-making within their statutory area of interest.

Northland Regional Council contributed $15,000 towards the plan’s development, and its Chief Executive Officer Malcolm Nicolson today congratulated Te Uri o Hau on the completion of the plan.

“This hapū management plan is the product of several years’ worth of work in gathering input and building their strategies and policies – it really is a huge achievement.

“The regional council is building strength in their relationship with Te Uri o Hau and this plan provides for us to work together in a way that better supports their objectives.”

As well as setting the strategic direction for engaging with statutory authorities and the community, the plan sets a number of long-term objectives around management of the area’s natural resources.

Among other aspirations detailed in the plan are strategies to educate and empower hapū members to be proactive in their role as kaitiaki of natural resources, and to help whānau get involved in commercial ventures in a way that is consistent with the hapū’s environmental and cultural values.