Statement from the Kaiwhakahaere of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu
3 June 2010
Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu has expressed disappointment at a decision to allow the Central Plains Water Trust (CPW) to take and use water from the Waimakariri and Rakaia Rivers for its proposed water enhancement scheme.
Ngāi Tahu believes the decision to be inconsistent with the vision and principles of the Canterbury Water Management Strategy which, while allowing for irrigation, would have placed greater emphasis on preventing adverse environmental impacts and would have required a catchment management plan for Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere to be put in place first.
Ngāi Tahu presented evidence to the panel of commissioners, which particularly focussed on the long-term impact of run-off and pollutants into Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere, the lack of due regard for cumulative adverse effects and the consequent detrimental impact on the environmental and tangata whenua values.
Ngāi Tahu disagrees with the independent commissioners’ conclusion that the additional nitrate and phosphorous inputs into Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere via lowland streams "are unlikely to have such significant effect on phytoplankton (including algal blooms and flow on to the fishery) to the extent that the CPW scheme should not proceed."
"The decision to allow resource consents for this project is a disappointing outcome for Ngāi Tahu and Te Waihora," says Mark Solomon, Kaiwhakahaere of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu.
"The commissioners have acknowledged that the lake is less than healthy and we believe that if this judgement is allowed to stand and the CPW scheme proceeds, then it will become even harder for Ngāi Tahu and the wider community to restore the lake to an acceptable and sustainable state of health."
Mr Solomon says Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu will spend further time reviewing the lengthy judgement but an appeal at this stage seems very likely.
"As the owner of the lake bed, Ngāi Tahu will continue to pursue every avenue available to it to improve the health of Te Waihora."
Ngāi Tahu Te Waihora Management Board Chairwoman Terrianna Smith said it was distressing to hear of yet another decision to allow resource consents that would end up costing Te Waihora. "Clearly we are yet to learn from our past mistakes which have occurred time and time again so that our mahinga kai (customary food resources and practices) continue to be polluted and our relationship with Te Waihora is further degraded."
ENDS