Human Rights Commission

Purpose

The Opotiki District Council (ODC) and Whakatohea Māori Trust Board (WMTB) have a formal agreement to work collaboratively on opportunities that would benefit Ōpōtiki and create local jobs for Whakatōhea beneficiaries.

Background

It is a long-held aspiration of the Ōpōtiki community to re-establish the town’s harbour and this is now a priority for the District Council.

Ōpōtiki district is small in terms of population (9,000) and economy ($180M GDP), but has a large geographical area, 50% of which is coastline and 25% is land. Ōpōtiki has been consistently ranked by Statistics NZ as the country’s highest social deprivation area.

There are significant opportunities for growth including excess capacity in water and wastewater infrastructure; extensive and varied land types and a supportive community. The Cawthron Institute has researched aquaculture opportunities in the area and identified the waters off Ōpōtiki as one of the most favourable in the country.

The aim is for the harbour to provide a platform for sustained economic growth in the district by:

• increasing the overall social, economic and cultural wellbeing of the Ōpōtiki community and the Eastern Bay of Plenty
• enhancing recreation opportunities and public access to the coast
• capitalising on opportunities arising from the proposed Whakatōhea 3,800 hectare mussel farm offshore from Ōpōtiki.
• providing a platform for other Eastern Bay of Plenty aquaculture ventures
• mitigating flooding of the Ōpōtiki township and surrounding area
• achieving a long-held community aspiration and a high-priority community outcome.

The development of the mussel farm venture, and other potential aquaculture developments which may follow, will benefit from improved harbour access to processing and servicing facilities. The employment opportunities associated with these developments are very exciting for the community.

The mussel farm project is the biggest in New Zealand; it is fully consented and owned by local iwi Whakatōhea (54%), Sealords (26%) and NZ Seafarms (20%)

Roles

The council is responsible for establishing a good working relationship with iwi while the role of the trust board is to engage with the council and work collaboratively on opportunities that would benefit Ōpōtiki and create job opportunities for Whakatōhea beneficiaries.

WMTB, through its company Eastern Seafarms Ltd, as the key player in the mussel farm project has the role of organising the necessary research and planning activities. It first applied for a resource consent in 2001 and this was granted seven years later. Eastern Seafarms also needed a Ministry of Fisheries permit which has now been granted and confirmed.

What happens

A Memorandum of Understanding is in place which sets out the council and the trust board’s joint intent to work together to bring the harbour development project to fruition and establish a base for mussel farming and processing in Ōpōtiki.

Both council and iwi take part in a local steering group. Groups have also travelled locally and to China to look at how to establish, maintain and run aquaculture projects.

Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

The Ōpōtiki Harbour development illustrates the right of indigenous peoples to self determination (Article 3) of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Article 32 which affirms the right of indigenous peoples “to determine and develop priories and strategies for the development or use of their lands or territories and other resources.”

What is working well

The council and the trust board work well together and both parties include each other in any decision-making, hui, consultations and trips. It is interesting to note that many of the Opotiki District Council staff are tāngata whenua or have local links to iwi while the non-Māori staff and councillors have been in the Ōpōtiki district for many generations. All believe and are motivated to make this project work because of the potential economic impact it will have for their community.

Parties share the costs as much as possible and have shared the initial investment to examine the feasibility and viability of the mussel farm.

Looking ahead

Sharing the costs seems to be a way forward for this relationship to be successful. The economic impact could result in an increase of over 900 local jobs if the aquaculture processing plant is established. The effect of this employment on household incomes in the region could be approximately $27 million, according to the economic impact analysis done by the partners.

The Cawthron Institute is planning research on higher value species, such as oysters, scallops, fin fish and sea cucumbers. This project offers exciting development opportunities for the Ōpōtiki community, as increasing world demand for seafood cannot be met by wild stocks. Given the negative environmental impacts on fishery in China, and the world economic recession, a relationship with Shandong Oriental Ocean Limited would greatly benefit all participants, as long as the processing of any species is located in Ōpōtiki.

This project has also investigated development in the field of fishery, between Yantai City, China and Ōpōtiki, and the establishment of a free trade agreement.

It is interesting to note that the attitude of the Opotiki District Council in terms of the role they play in this relationship aligns the council more closely with the local iwi and community than with central government.

Documentation

Further information about Whakatōhea and the Ōpōtiki Harbour development project

Last updated 15 July 2009.