KEY POINTS:
A settlement could be in sight for a dispute that has been festering for decades, involving the ownership of the Matahi Forest in the Bay of Plenty and land on which pine trees are planted.
The land and the forest are owned by Matariki Forests, a joint-venture company, but are claimed by the Matahi Valley hapu Ngai Tama Tuhirae of Tuhoe and the Omuriwaka Incorporation.
The Government says the Crown will buy a 20-year forestry right over the Matahi Forest near Waimana, 32km southwest of Opotiki, and the Oponae Forest in the Waioeka Gorge, 6km south of Opotiki, for $11.83 million.
The two forests cover 3483ha.
Under the terms of the deal, the Crown or Matariki Forests may buy the other's interests in the property during the 20-year term of the forestry right.
Treaty Negotiations Minister Michael Cullen and Forestry Minister Jim Anderton said the Crown's option to buy the land was assignable to Te Kotahi a Tuhoe, the overall Tuhoe entity mandated for Treaty negotiations.
This would mean Te Kotahi a Tuhoe would become the land's owner and thus could help the Ngai Tama Tuhirae hapu settle its grievance.
Although members of the hapu and the Omuriwaka Marae to which they belong were not available to comment on the deal, Te Kotahi a Tuhoe chairman Tamati Kruger said any opportunity to settle a grievance was a good thing, although it would require a big effort.
Dr Cullen and Mr Anderton said the Matahi Forest land was the subject of a complex dispute dating back to the original purchase by the Crown in 1896.
"The purchase will allow an opportunity for the grievance and surrounding issues to be dealt with," they said.
Because the Oponae trees were in the Whakatohea iwi's rohe (tribal territory), Mr Kruger said Whakatohea and Tuhoe would need to have discussions.
Members of Ngai Tama Tuhirae have from time to time blocked access to the Matahi Forest, to press their claim.
Mr Anderton said the Matahi and Oponae Forests would be managed for the Crown by the Crown Forestry division of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
He said the division managed the Crown's interest in 25 North Island forests with revenue exceeding $85 million a year.
Crown Forestry's role was to manage the forests and leases to best effect, pending the resolution of outstanding Treaty of Waitangi claims and other issues.
It worked with other Crown agencies such as the Office of Treaty Settlements.
In a separate - though linked - dispute involving members of the Ngai Tama Tuhirae hapu and the Omuriwaka Marae, access along Matahi Valley Rd near the marae has been blocked several times since the early 1990s, because the public road crosses marae land.
The closures blocked public access to popular hunting and fishing areas in Te Urewera National Park.
The road was built across marae land in 1964 after a flood washed away the legal road.
The council realigned the road to its legal location in April.
According to the Government, Matariki Forests is New Zealand's third-largest forestry company.
It is owned by a consortium of international investors and is managed by Rayonier New Zealand.
- NZPA
