March 15, 2018
Ngati Rangi backs DOC’s mahi
The chief negotiator for Ruapehu iwi Ngati Rangi wants to see changes to the way the Department of Conservation is funded.
The iwi has signed off a $17 million settlement that is light on land because much of its rohe is held in the conservation estate.
It will soon go into negotiations alongside its neighbouring iwi over joint claims to Tongariro National Park.
Che Wilson says tourism is vital for the region, but a lot of the infrastructure costs fall back on local government because the crown isn’t doing its bit, despite millions in fees and concessions going into the consolidated fund.
"So we need to be working both with DOC and with Treasury and my hope is Wellington stops restructuring all the provinces because DOC is forever in restructure wasting money, and all those people, those committed staff that work out in the field need to be allowed to continue to do their work to protect the places we all love as New Zealanders," he says.
Ngati Rangi looks forward to working with Conservation and the various district and regional councils on better management of the Whangaehu River.
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