Wednesday, 21 May 2008

On Friday, 4 April 2008, the Central North Island Iwi Collective formally presented to the Crown a proposal for the allocation of the Crown’s Central North Island forest land amongst its member iwi, towards the settlement of their historical Treaty of Waitangi claims.

Before final agreement over the settlement package is reached with the Central North Island Iwi Collective, the Crown wishes to seek public feedback on the proposed settlement. This feedback will assist in informing the Crown as to the level of broad support for the proposed settlement.

The Crown-licensed forests covered by the proposal are: Kaingaroa, Whakarewarewa, Waimihia, Horohoro, Marotiri, Crater, Pureora South, Waituhi and Taurewa. A full legal description of the forests is contained in Schedule 1 to the Central North Island Forests Agreement in Principle.

Four public consultation meetings are being held in the Central North Island region. They are open to all members of the public. The Crown is particularly interested in hearing views on the proposed settlement from members of iwi who consider they have an interest in the Central North Island forests but are not part of the Central North Island Collective. A separate round of hui is being held for members of Central North Island Collective iwi to vote on their support for the proposed settlement package.

The four public meetings will be held in:

• Rotorua, at the Rydges Hotel, 272 Fenton Street on Wednesday, 28 May at 6 pm;
• Taupō, at the Wairakei Resort, State Highway 1 on Thursday, 29 May at 6 pm;
• Murupara, at the Murupara School Hall, Pine Drive on Tuesday, 3 June at 6 pm; and
• Whanganui, at the Wanganui Function and Conference Centre, Purnell Street on Wednesday, 4 June at 2pm.

A Crown representative will chair all meetings. There will be a presentation on the proposed settlement package by representatives of the Central North Island Iwi Collective at the meetings. Officials from the Treasury, the Office of Treaty Settlements, and Te Puni Kökiri will attend to answer questions, and to receive feedback from attendees. Copies of the Central North Island Forests Agreement in Principle and further information on the Central North Island Collective process are available from:

• http://www.cniforest.co.nz/Home.aspx

The Crown also welcomes written submissions or comment on the proposed Central North Island forest settlement. These can be made by email to: cnisubs@tpk.govt.nz or by mail to:

Submissions on the proposed Central North Island forest settlement, Te Puni Kökiri, PO Box 3943, Wellington. Submissions are due by Friday, 6 June 2008.

Last modified: 4/06/2008