Coastal Waikato iwi met over the weekend of 9th to 10th July to discuss a joint approach to the harbour claims on the west coast of the Waikato.
Tony Spelman from Ngati Hikairo says the mana whenua of Kawhia, Aotea and Whaingaroa-Raglan harbours share common interests.
He says they are concerned those could be overlooked if they let the Waikato-Tainui executive control the claim negotiations.“With things going on in the west coast, the mining, the oil, those kinds of things, the minerals, there are some big power interests at play and I think it is not responsible enough we feel of ourselves to let this stuff take its course and let someone else deal with it. We need to be there and deal with it ourselves,” Mr Spelman says.
Local people will need to take a hard line if the major environmental problems facing the harbours are to be addressed.