Enabling Tino Rangatiratanga

A combined district plan for Tai Poutini/the West Coast covering Buller, Grey and Westland District Council areas is currently being prepared - Te Tai o Poutini Plan. Poutini Ngāi Tahu (Ngāti Waewae and Ngāti Mahaki) have been working with the Council planning team to develop the new Plan at both a Governance and staff level. The result is a draft Plan which aims to enable Tino Rangatiratanga for Poutini Ngāi Tahu across both traditional zoning matters as well as natural environment matters.

The Plan, which has been prepared by a cross Council team led by West Coast Regional Council has built on the partnership established between Poutini Ngāi Tahu and the West Coast Regional Council - who in 2020 signed the first Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreement in Aotearoa.

Key aspects of the Tino Rangatiratanga approach adopted include:

• A comprehensive policy framework across the Plan with Poutini Ngāi Tahu provisions for every zone, and across the natural environment overlays.
• Zoning Poutini Ngāi Tahu land across Tai Poutini as Māori Purpose Zone - where activities will be managed through an Iwi Management Plan - effectively making the Iwi Management Plan the main statutory document
• Balancing the Section 6 matters - and ensuring that Section 6 (e) is given equal weight with other matters.
• Developing a rule framework for natural environment overlays that provides for Poutini Ngāi Tahu activities as Permitted - and where again management of natural resources and values is led by the Iwi Management Plan framework