MEDIA RELEASE
30 June 2025
Māori landowners file against the government to protect their water rights

On Thursday last week, 32 Māori Lands Trusts representing over 150,000 landowners, hapū and iwi collectively, have filed proceedings in the High Court against the Crown, citing its repeated failure to uphold the tikanga-based and Tiriti guaranteed rights, interests and responsibilities of Māori in relation to freshwater.

Te Arawa Lakes Trust has joined the legal challenge to honour Te Tiriti and restore the health of water.

Te Arawa Lakes Trust, which governs 14 lakes in the Rotorua region, has joined with other Māori groups representing landowners, hapū and iwi in filing proceedings in the High Court against the Crown, citing its repeated failure to uphold the tikanga based and Tiriti-guaranteed rights, interests and responsibilities of Māori in relation to freshwater.

Te Arawa Lakes Trust, alongside the other claimant groups, is calling for:

• Immediate action to halt further decline in the health and wellbeing of water bodies
• Recognition of Māori tikanga and proprietary rights in water and geothermal resources
• A fair and durable water allocation system that enables Māori to fulfil their responsibilities as kaitiaki.

“Te Arawa Lakes Trust is standing up for the mauri of our lakes and Māori water rights and interests over the 14 lakes in our rohe. It’s about acknowledging that Māori have never relinquished our relationship with water. This is about restoring balance and our ability to exercise proper kaitiakitanga. It’s about acknowledging that Te Arawa, like all Māori, have never relinquished our relationship with our ancestral waters.” says Wallace Haumaha, chairman of Te Arawa Lakes Trust.

Ends
Media contact: Wallace Haumaha 027 275 7572
Te Reo Māori media contact: Kereama Wright 027 646 1840