December 18, 2023
PM warned on scrapping te mana o te wai policy
Māori iwi, business and environmental leaders including Traci Houpapa, Paul Morgan and Kingi Smiler have joined freshwater experts in writing to Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to urge him not to make a “terrible mistake” on clean drinking water and healthy rivers.
Cabinet has agreed to replace the 2020 National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management.
The open letter says New Zealand’s rivers, lakes and aquifers are in a dire state, and they will only get worse if the policy is removed.
Māori environmental planner Dr Mahina-a-rangi Baker, who co-chairs the Kāpiti Freshwater Planning Committee, says the statement’s elevation of Te Mana o te Wai as the fundamental concept in freshwater planning has provided clear direction and certainty for communities and economies.
It directs a common-sense approach to ensure the health of water and universal access to drinking water is protected for future generations, before other uses.
Te Mana o te Wai also directs more appropriate levels of involvement of Māori in decision-making, and the Government’s intention to diminish the Māori voice will ultimately diminish the quality of decision-making about freshwater.