r RECEIVED CLADMIN lq '4. I ~ .,.... r<)l..-- ,.....,..-._ ................ 1 Kawerau AS and other blocks by Sharyn Green This report was commissioned by the Waitangi Tribunal for the claim by JH Fox for Tuwharetoa Te Atua Reretahi Trust Board relating to Te Wai U 0 Tuwharetoa (Wai 21) Any conclusions drawn or opinions expressed are those of the author Introduction My name is Sharyn Green (N gati Maniapoto) and I am employed as a researcher for the Waitangi Tribunal. I have produced research reports for the Waitangi Tribunal on Wai 247, 248, and 238. I have a law degree from the University of Otago in Dunedin and I am an admitted barrister and solicitor of the court as of October 1992. I completed some Maori studies papers while at the University of Otago and tutored Maori language for the department for three years. I was commissioned by the tribunal to produce this report in May 1992. This report concerns an ancillary claim to Wai 62. Wai 62 was lodged with the Waitangi Tribunal by John Henry Fox, Beverly Adlam, and William Savage of the iwi Tuwharetoa ki Kawerau, in 1988. That claim concerns lands confiscated by the Crown pursuant to legislation in the 1860s following the New Zealand wars.1 This ancillary claim to Wai 62 concerns Tasman Pulp and Paper Mill Ltd (Tasman) creating part of an effluent treatment system on land where the rangatira Tuwharetoa had a pa, and features other sites considered significant by Ngati Tuwharetoa. This report is confined to discussing the establishment of this system. This report has used official information supplied by the Maori Land Court, Waiariki, and Crown agencies. The relationship Tuwharetoa ki Kawerau have with land subject to this report, has also come from Maori Land Court files. This report does not give an account of the history of the ownership of the Maori land where the sludge system has been established, since no claim has been lodged in that respect. It is anticipated that the proceedings of the larger Wai 62 claim will provide an avenue for any claim about the ownership of the blocks. The issue of pollution and the effect of the sludge pond on the spring also remains unresolved. A suitably qualified person such as an engineer is required to make such a judgement. Because this report is exploratory in nature only, all interested parties may comment on the information or analysis in, or omitted from, this report. It should be noted that claimants still have the right to amend their statement of claim, despite the release of this report. The step by step establishment of Tasman's effluent treatment system, on the land subject to this claim, will first be discussed. This is for the reader to use as a reference for the terminology used throughout the report referring to certain sites in the system, and to explain the entire system from its outset to the present time. Location The land subject to this claim is at Kawerau, Bay of Plenty. The area is on the west bank of the Tarawera river, while Tasman's mill is to the east of the river. (See Map 1) Cathy Marr Background to the Tuwharetoa ki Kawerau Raupatu claim 30 June 1991 (Tuwharetoa Ki Kawerau Record of Inquiry, Part 2 Record of Documents, A2(a):1) oMotiti Is a OJ- Rurima Is SH.5 MAP 2 ....... Putauaki~ (Mt Edgecombe) .. ,ef «I' Tarawera o 20km :='=========;-------" o 10 mi MAP LOCALITY MAP 2 Kawerau A8 and other blocks Background The site chosen for Tasman's effluent treatment system comprises a catchment basin, beginning at the head with the spring Te Wai U 0 Tuwharetoa. Prior to Tasman leasing parts of this basin area, water from this spring flowed down a stream, into a lake known as Rotoiti paku, then on to the Tarawera river. (See Map 2). In 1971, Tasman obtained a lease of four Maori owned blocks, in the catchment basin. The four blocks concerned were Kawerau A9, Kawerau All, Matata 39A4 and Matata 160. Tasman attempted to obtain a lease of another block in the basin, Kawerau A8, but the owners (some of whom are claimants) refused to lease. "Kawerau A8" refers to a large block of approximately 187 hectares. Kawerau A8 was partitioned into Kawerau ASA and ASB by 1981, and that year was allocated the new appellations ASC and ASD.2 (See Map 3). Kawerau A8C, is a smaller block of 1.77 ha within the larger A8D, and was regazetted as a marae reservation in 1988. At this court sitting, part of A8D was also set aside as an urupa reservation. 3 These reservations were regazetted as reservations already existed over the "A8" block since 1961 at least. When Kawerau A8 went through the court in 19S1 to be partitioned, the blocks were vested in trustees, nominated by a meeting of owners. The three trustees (also owners) were: John Fox, William Savage and Kanui Hunia. 4 The particulars of title from 1980 for the A8 blocks lists 24 owners.5 The spring, Te Wai U 0 Tuwharetoa is situated on the A8D block. Kawerau A9 lies adjacent to the AS block. Rotoiti paku is situated on this block. In 1970 Kawerau A9 and All, and Matata 39A4 and 160 were vested in New Zealand Insurance Company Limited (NZI) as responsible trustee. This was a result of an application by Tasman. 6 The trust order also nominated seven advisory trustees, who were owners. 7 Isobel Fox (married to John Fox) was one nominated advisory trustee. In 19S0 new advisory trustees were appointed, which included Isobel Fox 2 Whakatane minute book vol 72, 10 July 1981, p256; document bank (db hereafter) pI 3 New Zealand Gazette, No 180, 27 October 1988, p4240; db p2 4 Whakatane minute book vol 72, 19 October 1981, p374; db pp 3-4 5 Particulars of title, certified as correct as at 13 October 1980 for Kawerau A8A and A8B (known as A8C and A8D respectively by an order of the court in 1981); db pp 5-6 6 Application to the Maori Land Court for orders pursuant to ss435, 438 of the Maori Affairs Act 1953, 22 September 1969; db pp 7-8 7 Opotiki minute book vol 45, 15 June 1970, pp 270-280; db p9 3 Kawerau A8 and other blocks and Beverly Adlam. 8 Tasman began infilling the lake on the A9 block for its sludge pond in 1971. Within the Matata 39A4 block, are three urupa sites: Waitahanui, Otukoiro and Te Atua Reretahi. In 1976, the three urupa were gazetted as Maori reserves. 9 Waitahanui is situated on a hill that was once an old pa site. This report is particularly concerned with this urupa because according to the records and the claimants, it has been directly threatened by Tasman's actions in the leased area. It would appear from evidence and orders of the court that many of the owners of the AS block also have shares in other blocks in the basin. 10 Some time prior to 1970, Tasman had been dumping solid waste material between the original Rotoiti paku and the AS block. (See Map 4). In 1976, in response to complaints by Mr Fox that sludge from the ~ludge pond was encroaching on the AS block, Tasman built a solid embankment on the A9 block between the sludge pond and the AS block. This was apparently built on the solid waste dump. The embankment was to cause a build up of water on the AS block, which Tasman said it would pump to the Tarawera river. Mr Fox however gave Tasman the authority to allow the water to build up as a lake for duck shooting. There is a culvert pipe through the embankment that controls the level of the pond on the A8 block. In response to a complaint that leachate was leaking into the A8 pond from the embankment, a toe drain was constructed at the base of the embankment in 1983. A petition of grievances was presented to Tasman in 1983 by the advisory trustees of the Kawerau A9 block. 11 One complaint was that an embankment had been built between the sludge lagoon and the hill where the urupa is. This was to stop sludge encroaching on the urupa. The embankment however was said to have been built 8 Whakatane minute book vol 70, 14 April 1980, pp 198-199; db pp 10-11 9 Whakatane minute book vol 63, 25 March 1976, p196; db p12 10 Written evidence of Peter Cumming before the Maori Land Court sitting on 16 January 1985; Application no 2889/84; db p210 11 The petition says that this is on behalf of the beneficial owners of the lands subject to the lease to Tasman, and Tuwharetoa Te Atua Reretahi whanau "(local Tuwharetoa people)"; db p25 4 Kawerau A8 and other blocks partly on tapu land so a new proposal for protecting the urupa was put to Tasman. This involved moving back the embankment, and creating a water course to run along the bank starting at the A8 pond with the flow and finishing at a small pond to the north of the urupa. This newly created pond was named the urupa lagoon. The water course from the A8 pond to the urupa lagoon is in addition to another channel flowing from the A8 pond to the urupa lagoon. The toe drain carries leachate to this channel which runs a course to the urupa lagoon. This has the effect of completely surrounding the urupa site with water for protection and aesthetics.