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Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones says a $19 million investment into predator control is a chance for hapū to put into action their rhetoric around kaitiakitanga.
The grant from the Provincial Growth Fund will go to the crown company Predator Free 2050, which Mr Jones says was set up by the previous government without the funding needed for the task at hand.
He says it's not a replacement for 1080 poisoning but an incentive for those developing new traps and control methods to bring those to market.
In some areas it could mean more trapping with its associated social and employment benefits.
"Now there will be some areas, particularly isolated and rugged terrain where 1080 perhaps is going to be a permanent feature. I don't know, that's up to the Conservation Minister and that side of the Government but this $19.6 million will be spent in the surge areas and we know there are many areas rich in Māori history, rich in Māori nature in those areas and I'm looking forward to those people working in partnership with Predator Free 2050," Mr Jones says.
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