The draft Joint Management Agreement aims to protect the water of Lake Taupō (Taupō Moana) (pictured) and the Upper Waikato River. Photo: RNZ / Libby Kirkby-McLeod
The Taupō District Council has voted to defer consideration of a draft water management agreement with local iwi Ngāti Tūwharetoa until after the next local government elections.
The draft Joint Management Agreement (JMA) has drawn controversy with one councillor, Duncan Campbell, calling in lobby group Hobson's Pledge to raise his concerns to a wider audience.
The purpose of the draft JMA is to protect the water of Lake Taupō (Taupō Moana) and the Upper Waikato River. It would see the council and Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board collaborate on work such as monitoring and enforcement, district plan reviews, resource consent application assessments, and enabling customary activities.
At a meeting on Thursday the council resolved to defer consideration of the draft Joint Management Agreement and direct the chief executive to refer the matter to the incoming council as soon as reasonably practicable following the local government elections in October 2025.
Six councillors, including the Mayor David Trewavas, voted in favour of the resolution, five were against and one was absent.
Trewavas said this was a mandatory joint management agreement under the Upper Waikato River Act 2010.
Its aim was to simply protect and restore Lake Taupō and the upper Waikato River, and it made sense for the council and Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board to work together to do that, he said.
"I'm all for the JMA but I just don't feel the community has been taken along with us, there's been a lot of misinformation out there and public debate around the agreement.
"For that reason today councillors decided to defer consideration of the JMA till until the new council has been elected in October and that will give them a chance to fully understand the agreement and what's involved."
Trewavas said while the resolution did not include a formal consultation process there was plenty of information on the council website about the JMA for people to read and they could speak with their elected members if they had concerns.
"Council continues to value the close relationship we've had with Tūwharetoa and we intend to work closely with them into the future," he said.
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