Te Roroa join opposition to park plan

Kaitiaki of Northland's Waipoua Forest, Te Roroa, are among a number of submitters who have opposed the development of the kauri forest into a national park.
Te Roroa want the proposal deferred until further investigations are completed and Te Roroa is accepted as a co-governing partner.
Thirty-five public submissions to the New Zealand Conservation Authority's (NZCA) discussion document were received when submissions closed on Monday.
The Department of Conservation's Kauri Coast area manager Meirene Hardy-Birch said another three people were granted an extension until today to complete their submissions.
Te Roroa has raised concerns about the clarity of the document, and also questions a number of apparent anomalies to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi.
In particular, Te Roroa wants a commitment from the Crown for co-governance of the park.
Ms Hardy-Birch said this issue was a key concern for a number of submitters since national park legislation, unlike the Reserves Act, did not allow for co-governance.
She said around half of the submissions received have been in support of a co-governed and managed national park while around a quarter of submitters were concerned at how a co-governed park would be managed.
Other submitters wanted to see an expansion of the national park to include other kauri areas - some of these were as far south as Coromandel - while other main concerns centred around how a Northland national park would be funded in this day and age, she said.
Waipoua is NZ's largest remaining area of old-growth kauri forest, and has exceptional diversity of vegetation and species including numerous threatened species. It also includes ecological features, groves of giant kauri including the iconic Tane Mahuta and the Maitahi Wetland, a rare example of gumland shrubland and swamp.
It is the ancestral home of Te Roroa.
In 2008, Te Roroa settled its historical Treaty of Waitangi claims with the Crown but two claims affecting areas in the the proposal still remain outstanding.
Tim Rueben, tumuaki (chairman) of the Te Roroa Manawhenua Trust's submission says the discussion document is unbalanced, inaccurate and incomplete and places emphasis on ecological values at the expense of Maori historical and cultural values.
He calls for the proposal to be deferred until all affected treaty claims have been settled; wahi tapu and cultural sites of importance to Te Roroa excluded from the proposal; the park boundaries approved by Te Roroa; a cost benefits analysis has been completed; an environmental impact assessment obtained; Wai 262 report recommendations accepted by the Government; and a commitment for co-governance and a review of the Northland Conservation Management Strategy has been completed.
Te Roroa suggests a Northland kauri conservation park as an alternative to a national park, since under the Conservation Act, conservation parks are managed for the protection of their natural and historical resources.
Ms Hardy Birch said a report would be prepared for the director general to send to NZCA for consideration.