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Download AudioNgāti Whātua leader Dame Naida Glavish says as someone raised in the Hōteo River and Kaipara moana she feels obliged to protect the awa for future generations.
Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Whātua is in the High Court challenging Auckland Council’s 2021 consent for Waste Management to build a landfill in Dome Valley, near Warkworth.
Dame Naida says growing up she remembers the river as a plentiful source of kai like scallops and whitebait.
She says the iwi is unconvinced by scientific and engineering evidence claiming the 60-hectare landfill won’t leach into the river, and it doesn’t trust the company.
“They do not know the river. They haven’t felt the mauri of it. They haven’t been in it. They have no relationship with it or anything to do with it other than it’s a potential jawbone of silver and gold,” Dame Naida says.
She says while neighbouring iwi Ngāti Manuhiri seems split on the development, Ngāti Whatua is willing to speak on behalf of the river
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