June 19, 2025

Impacts to Māori on changes to the RMA loom large

Matthew Tukaki Posted On June 19, 2025

The New Zealand Government’s overhaul of the Resource Management Act (RMA) has sparked serious concern among Māori communities, legal experts, and environmental advocates. The coalition government’s decision to repeal the previous Labour-led reforms and implement sweeping changes to environmental law threatens to undermine Māori rights, dilute protections for ancestral lands and waterways, and weaken Treaty-based participation in decision-making. Introduced in 1991, the RMA was New Zealand’s principal legislation for managing land use, water, air, and natural resources. While imperfect, it included provisions for Māori input through references to the Treaty of Waitangi, kaitiakitanga (guardianship), and the recognition of Māori relationships with the environment.

In 2023, the Labour Government attempted to replace the RMA with new legislation; the Natural and Built Environment Act (NBA) and the Spatial Planning Act; aiming to simplify consent processes while strengthening environmental protections and Māori involvement.

However, in 2024, the new National-led coalition government scrapped these reforms, returning to a modified version of the RMA with a strong emphasis on reducing “red tape” for development.

Key Changes and Their Impact on Māori

Reduced Role of Māori in Decision-Making

Under the RMA’s replacement laws, Māori had expanded roles via regional planning committees and iwi partnership mechanisms. The new changes:

Remove or downgrade co-governance arrangements.
Shift from “giving effect to” the principles of the Treaty to merely “recognising” them; weakening the legal requirement to uphold Māori rights.

This significantly reduces Māori influence over land and resource management decisions that directly impact their whenua, wai, and taonga.

Faster Development at the Expense of Consultation

The government’s emphasis on fast-tracking consents for housing, infrastructure, and mining projects means:

Shortened consultation periods, or in some cases, none at all.
Erosion of iwi and hapū rights to object or appeal projects that affect wāhi tapu, mahinga kai, or customary rights.

For example, exploratory mining licenses and water bottling consents may be approved without adequate engagement with mana whenua.

Weakened Environmental Protections

Māori environmental values; such as mauri (life force), whakapapa (interconnectedness), and kaitiakitanga; have often guided opposition to destructive developments. The new legislation prioritises economic efficiency and infrastructure growth, often at the cost of:

Wetlands, rivers, and biodiversity.
Longstanding tribal efforts to rehabilitate ecosystems degraded by colonisation and commercial activity.

Loss of Legal Recourse

Legal pathways for Māori to challenge environmentally harmful developments have been curtailed. The removal of certain appeal rights and the narrowing of standing limits the ability of iwi, hapū, and Māori organisations to defend their interests in the Environment Court.

Opposition and Outcry

Māori leaders and legal scholars have condemned the reforms as a breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi stated:

“This government is dismantling hard-won gains for tangata whenua and placing profit over people and the planet.”

The New Zealand Māori Council, iwi collectives, and environmental organisations have launched petitions, protests, and legal challenges, warning that the changes:

Disempower Māori as partners to the Crown.
Risk irreversible harm to cultural heritage and ecosystems.
Set back decades of progress in recognising indigenous rights in environmental law.

While the government defends the reforms as necessary for economic growth and housing supply, Māori advocates argue that true development must include Māori voices and values. Without structural protections and Treaty accountability, there’s a risk of repeating the environmental and cultural losses of the past.

The coming months will likely see court battles, Waitangi Tribunal claims, and a surge in Māori-led activism to defend the whenua and uphold rangatiratanga.