Peninsula Maori go for the double

Hauraki Treaty Collective chairman Paul Majurey. Photo / Supplied

Hauraki Maori on the Coromandel Peninsula hope their foreshore and seabed claims will be included in current Treaty negotiations.

Foreshore claims - which will be known as Marine and Coastal Area claims - under the new legislation could apply to 11.6 per cent of the coastline on the peninsula.

That's because Maori own 102.6km of land abutting the foreshore, and land ownership is a blunt tool for assessing where iwi or hapu groups could pass the threshold for customary title which is a limited ownership.

The test for the title is exclusive use and occupation of the area since 1840 with no substantial interruption.

Paul Majurey is chairman of the Hauraki Treaty Collective which started Crown negotiations dealing with its historical treaty claims this year. The Waitangi Tribunal has previously reported that Hauraki iwi are some of the most landless in the country, retaining less than 3 per cent of their original lands.

Mr Majurey said there's no reason why tribes can't deal with foreshore issues in the same process.

It's a position the collective has put to Attorney-General Chris Finlayson, who is also the Treaty Negotiations minister.

"He was very receptive to the idea.

"What our people are saying to us is that we want that included in our settlement outcome. We're already in Treaty negotiations, it makes sense for us to put them together," Mr Majurey said.

Mr Finlayson would not say if combining the issues during negotiations would occur but said there might be some efficiencies in the approach.

However, the two matters are fundamentally separate, he said.

"The recognition of customary title is different from Treaty settlements - the former recognises indigenous property rights that have survived since 1840; the latter addresses losses through Treaty breaches by the Crown."

The Hauraki Treaty Collective

Ngati Hako, Ngati Paoa, Ngati Tamatera, Ngati Tara-Tokanui, Ngati Porou ki Hauraki, Ngati Whanaunga, Ngati Hei, Ngati Maru, Ngati Pukenga, Te Patukirikiri, Ngai Tai ki Tamaki and Nga Rahiri Tumutumu.