Media Release

24 October 2026

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Te Rūnanganui o Ngāti Porou (TRONP), the post-settlement governance entity for Ngāti Porou, says the government’s move to broaden the focus from woody debris clean-up to long-term land-use transition is an encouraging direction for Ngāti Porou and the wider Tairāwhiti region.

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TRONP Interim Chief Executive Henare Walker says Ngāti Porou has been calling for a much longer-term conversation about the future of the region.

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“We have been saying that Ngati Porou cannot keep focusing only on cleaning up after each major event. We have to deal with the bigger question of what land use should look like across the rohe and how we protect our whenua, our people and our economy for the future.”

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“The Government needs to consider what commitments and structures already exist with Ngati Porou to determine the best spend and use of this significant contribution to our significant problem”

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“The proposed pilots are particularly important because the government says what is learned from them will help shape future policy and funding decisions. If that is the case, Ngāti Porou needs to decide what is tested, where the priorities lie and what success looks like.”

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“For Ngāti Porou, the important thing now is making sure we are part of shaping that transition from the outset, so the decisions being made today deliver lasting benefits for our whenua and our people.”

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Contact: Dean Cook

Head of Marketing and Communications

Email : dcook@tronp.org.nz

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