Rāhui Mātaitai o Taranaki Iwi: Ko te pae tata kia tū tonu te rāhui mō te rua tau, ko te pae tawhiti kia whakatūria he Tāpui Mātaitai
Taranaki Iwi Seek Rāhui Extension to Safeguard Coastal Marine Life.
Taranaki hapū and local community groups are awaiting a decision from Minister for Oceans and Fisheries Shane Jones on an application to extend the current rāhui mātaitai along the coastline stretching from the Taungatara Stream to the Tapuae Stream.
Originally established in December 2022 under section 186A of the Fisheries Act, the temporary closure spans over 70 kilometers of coast. Under statutory requirements, hapū must apply to the Ministry for Primary Industries every two years to maintain the protective measure.
The ultimate objective for the iwi is to establish a permanent Mātaitai Reserve, which would grant them the legal authority to enact local bylaws aligned with traditional tikanga and tailored conservation needs.
Community representatives emphasize that the temporary rāhui has allowed local reefs to recover from severe over-harvesting, while fostering strong collaboration between Taranaki Iwi hapū, neighboring hapū, and the broader local community.
"The current closure is really important because it allows time for us to plan accordingly and work towards something that's more sustainable and more long-term," says Ngahina Capper, Pou Whakahaere Whanaungatanga.
"And so the Mātaitai Reserve allows that. It allows the ability for marae, pā, hapū, for our community to put in bylaws—bylaws which can be put in place based on our tikanga, based on what we feel is required for our unique coast here."
"It's allowed Tangaroa Moana, the pūkawa, the takutai to recover from their depleted state," explains Fraser Richards, representative for Ngā Mahanga Hapū.
"It's about our relationship to the takutai, but it's also about our relationships with each other as a local community, because that's where the power lies to protect Tangaroa, to protect Moana."
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E Whaia Ana e Ngā Hapū o Taranaki te Whakaroanga o te Rāhui Mātaitai.
E whanga ana ngā hapū o Taranaki Iwi me ētehi ohu hapori ki te whakataunga a te Minita Take Ahu Matua a Shane Jones ki tā rātou tono whakaroa rāhui mātaitai o te ākau kei Taungatara Awa tae atu ki Tapuae Awa.
Nō te Tīhema 2022 tū ai te rāhui mātaitai neke atu i te 70 kiromita te roa, i raro i te mana o te wāhanga 186a o te ture Fisheries. Mēnā e hiahia ana te whakaroa te rāhui, me tuku tono ki Te Manatū Ahu Matua ia rua tau.
Ko te wawata nui kia whakatūria he Tāpui Mātaitai kia mana motuhake ai te kawe a te iwi i ngā tikanga tiaki taiao.
E ai ki ngā ringa hāpai o te rāhui, kua kaha mahi tahi ngā hapū o Taranaki Iwi, ētehi hapū o ngā iwi e pā tata ana, me ngā hapori o te tongi rāhui kia tiaki i ngā pūkawa o tō rātou ākau.
Kua whakatakotoria e Te Whakamharatanga Okeroa, te Pou Rāhui, te hohonu o te kaupapa nei mō ngā uri whakaheke.
“Haramai au ki te moana nei ana ka kite mai ngā pahi, ngā waka katoa e haramai nei na, nō ngā pito o waho o Taranaki Iwi mō te murua, murua, raupatungia rātou rā ngā taonga nei, kaitaonga o Tangaroa.”
I pukuriri hoki ia ki te whatianga o ngā tikanga tuku Iheke a ngā tūpuna, engari e whakapono ana ia ki te mana o te whakatapu i raro i ngā ture tiaki.
“Koirā te tino kaupapa mō te whakatapungia a Tangaroa; mō ngā uri kei te haere tonu mai ehara mō mātou nei, nā ngā mea kaumātua pērā i ahau engari ko te tino kaupapa kia noho pai ai ngā momo mō ngā uri kei te haere tonu mai, koina.”
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