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TheWaikato River
and its catchment
The Waikato River and its region has been populated for at
least the past 700 to 800 years. The river provided physical
and spiritual sustenance for large populations of Maaori
living along its catchment. Throughout that time it was a
source of food, including eels, fish and plants. It was also an
important waka route.
With the arrival of European settlers in the 1840s and 1850s the Waikato River was
the main access route inland for traders and missionaries.
The last hundred years have seen sweeping changes to the region’s landscapes
and where people have settled, used and created resources. Over time, the human
activities along the Waikato River and the increasingly intensive land uses through
its catchments have degraded the Waikato River and reduced the relationships and
aspirations of communities who identify with the Waikato River.
This degradation of the Waikato River and its catchment has severely compromised
Waikato River iwi in their ability to exercise kaitiakitanga or conduct their tikanga
and kawa.
Through the Treaty Settlement process between Waikato-Tainui and the Crown the
Guardians Establishment Committee was formed with the support of other Waikato
River iwi. In 2009 the Guardians Establishment Committee finalised its Vision and
Strategy for the Waikato River. That Vision and Strategy, “to restore and protect the
health and wellbeing of the Waikato River”, has been incorporated in the settlement
legislation for the Waikato River Raupatu Claim - the legislation under which the
Authority is constituted. The Authority assumed guardianship of the Vision and
Strategy at the time of its formation in 2010.
The Vision and Strategy incorporates the objectives sought by Waikato-Tainui
and other objectives that reflect the interests of Waikato River iwi and of all New
Zealanders. In 2012 the Nga Wai o Maniapoto legislation was enacted to include the
upper catchment of the Waipa River through to its junction with the Waikato River.
The Vision and Strategy now applies to the whole of the Waipa River catchment.
These objectives encompass all people of the Waikato River and their relationships
with it – through their communities, industries, recreation, social and cultural pursuits.
A number of important actions are being taken to support the achievement of the
Vision and Strategy, such as the Waikato Regional Council’s Healthy Rivers plan
change. This plan change, with a focus on water quality within the catchment, will
provide a regulatory framework to help achieve the objectives of the Vision and
Strategy. Alongside this the work of the Restoration Forum, and the development of
a 5-15 year restoration strategy for the catchment should result in a more cohesive,
prioritised and coordinated approach to restoration activities in the years to come.
Restoring and protecting the health and wellbeing of the Waikato River
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