Tumu Kaituna protest urges Tauranga City Council to delay resource consent decision

Sand mining at Tumu Kaituna 14 on Bell Rd near Pāpāmoa. Photo / Supplied

Stay out of it!

This is the message to the Tauranga City Council that will be blasted loud and clear today, as more than 100 people from throughout the Bay of Plenty are expected to turn up to the Save Tumu Kaituna protest.

The peaceful protest kaupapa stems from the concerns around the sand mining on the land known as Tumu Kaituna 14.

Tumu Kaituna 14 Trust has applied for a resource consent to extend the mining on Tumu Kaituna land at a higher rate from the Tauranga City Council - an application the Save Tumu Kaituna protesters want the council to hold off on.

Save Tumu Kaituna was formed by shareholders of the land, hapū and iwi to prevent the consent from going ahead while other land disputes within the trust are before the Māori Land Court.

Trustees for Tumu Kaituna 14 had previously applied to the Māori Land Court last year to convert more than 55 hectares of their 240ha prime coastal Māori freehold land near Maketū in the Bay of Plenty into general title.

There are 5000 Māori who are shareholders in this land, including all members of the Save Tumu Kaituna campaign group.

Save Tumu Kaituna spokeswoman Renee Kiriona said the council needed to hold off on granting the consent until the matters were settled in court.

"Tauranga City Council have the power, and depending on what decision they make, they can make this even messier for us," she said.

She said the land was not regenerating at the same pace it was being mined and intensifying this would destroy it.

Kiriona said anyone was welcome to join the picketing.

The protest

Monday September 30, 10.30am to 2pm
Bell Rd, Pāpāmoa