April 17, 2023
Manuhiri dump deal positive for Kaiprara
The chair of the Kaipara Moana Remediation joint committee, Tame Te Rangi, says an agreement between Ngāti Manuhiri and the promoters of a giant landfill near Dome Valley could be positive for long term efforts to clean up the harbour.
A resource consent hearing this month heard a deal had been struck where if the proposed mega-dump went ahead, Waste Management New Zealand will eventually gift all the land involved – over 1000 hectares – to the Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust.
Mr Te Rangi says the mine area is in the headwaters of the Hoteo River, which is one of the five major catchments going onto the Kaipara.
He says part of the remediation kaupapa is that mana whenua have to be involved in decisions about land use in those catchments.
“Knowing that Manuhiri are at the headwaters of the Hoteo River with this mega-landfill proposed in their midst, tied together through a relationship agreement, I have every confidence that level of decision making will provide confidence that this is being delivered bottom up, top down,” Mr Te Rangi says.
He says landfill technology has made major advances since Waste Management built its Redvale landfill at Dairy Flat, and its Kate Valley landfill near Rangiora has withstood the Canterbury earthquakes.