Iwi takes waterways claim to court

South Island iwi Nga¯i Tahu is taking the Crown to court, seeking ‘‘rangatiratanga’’ over all freshwater in its takiwa¯ (area).

The case would seek to establish ‘‘shared authority’’ with the Crown over policy and practice.

Te Ru¯ nanga o Nga¯ Tahu kaiwhakehaere (chairwoman) Lisa Tumahai said the case against the Crown, lodged in the High Court in Christchurch on Monday, came after generations of being excluded from kaitiakitanga (guardianship) of waterways.

‘‘For too long, governments have talked about addressing these issues but have made piecemeal progress,’’ said Tumahai. ‘‘That is not enough. Now is the time to act.’’

The case would seek to fix degradation of rivers and lakes caused by what the iwi says is environmental mismanagement.

Rangatiratanga has a wide number of meanings, covering everything from leadership to authority to autonomy.

One of the iwi leaders taking part in the action was Sir Tipene O’Regan, who said Nga¯i Tahu was not interested in water as a ‘‘conventional property’’.

‘‘We are just saying that our situation in Te Waipounamu is materially different than other parts,’’ O’Regan said.

He said they simply wanted the rangatiratanga guaranteed by law in the Crown’s formal apology in its Deed of Settlement.

‘‘We want participation, and we want to be involved.’’

It would mean ‘‘some kind of shared authority with the Crown on both policy and practice’’.

‘‘But first you’ve got to get the recognition that the Crown has actually committed by law to recognise our rights and interests.’’

Tumahai said the iwi tried to engage with the Crown on water issues ‘‘without success’’.

‘‘We agree with the Waitangi Tribunal in its freshwater inquiry stage 2 report last year that progress on the recognition of our rights, responsibilities and obligations to freshwater in our takiwa¯ now requires a test case in the courts.’’

Upoko – customary leader Dr Te Maire Tau said the results of current management could be seen in the condition of rivers, lakes and streams throughout Canterbury, Otago and Southland.

In the case, Nga¯ i Tahu would seek to compel the Crown to fix the problems in partnership with the iwi.

Tau said the claim was filed because the waterways in Canterbury had ‘‘virtually been destroyed’’.

‘‘They really are a disgrace. But it’s not just quality and pollution, it’s about the extraction of water.’’

Nga¯ i Tahu people lived on the rivers, he said, and simple things like gathering watercress ‘‘you just don’t do now’’ because of the pollution.

Whole generations of South Islanders had simply had not swum on Canterbury rivers along its coastline, Tau said.

He said the Settlement Act for Nga¯ i Tahu was very clear, that the tribe had rangatiratanga.

Nga¯i Tahu was a tribe that lived on the land, he said. ‘‘We know the braided rivers, we know the waterways, the waterfalls.

‘‘We’re not a tribe that would go to the supermarket to eat... what defines us are the foods of the landscape.’’

Rangatiratanga meant Nga¯i Tahu would have ‘‘rights, responsibilities and obligations’’ related to waterways in its area.

This included doing what it could to stop waterway and environmental degradation.

‘‘It comes from a perspective of water as a resource to be extracted, often well beyond users’ needs. It does not put the science, or the health of the waterways on which our own health depends.’’

The case was brought by 15 senior Nga¯ i Tahu leaders from across the Nga¯i Tahu takiwa¯, and Te Ru¯nanga o Nga¯i Tahu represented by Tumahai.

She said the iwi view was that the case was a matter of public good.

IAIN MCGREGOR/STUFF Nga¯i Tahu kaiwhakahaere Lisa Tumahai says the iwi had engaged with the Crown without success on the issue of freshwater.