Income crucial to Lake Taupo plan

By JO-MARIE BROWN

For Ngati Tuwharetoa, taking action to save one of their greatest taonga is not as straightforward as it may seem.

Preserving the health of Lake Taupo is of cultural and spiritual importance but the iwi's economic future depends on being able to generate an income from the farms and forests they own around the water's edge.

After yesterday's announcement of proposals to restrict land use, Tuwharetoa's paramount chief, Tumu te Heuheu, acknowledged the tribe was faced with a dilemma.

"The land and its development is part of our ability to provide stepping stones for the growth of our people," he said.

"When we talk about the reduction of these opportunities, we're talking about something that not only affects the people who live today, but those who will take their place tomorrow."

Ngati Tuwharetoa owns just over half the pastoral farms and an estimated 80 per cent of private land in the Lake Taupo catchment.

Tumu te Heuheu said the amount of nitrogen leaching from that land would have to be reviewed and plans for those farms and forests were now uncertain.

"There's a great deal of discussion that the tribe needs to undertake but hopefully we'll find opportunities that we can consider."