Ngāi Tahu, Tīwai Point sign agreement to restore aluminium smelter land in Bluff

Tiwai Point aluminium smelter in Bluff. Photo / NZME

A new partnership with Ngāi Tahu has been set up to restore the whenua at the site of the Tīwai Point aluminium smelter in Southland.

The agreement was signed at Te Rau Aroha Marae in Motupōhue/Bluff by representatives from Murihiku Rūnaka and Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu.

Under the agreement, New Zealand Aluminium Smelters (NZAS) and Rio Tinto will work with local rūnaka to remove waste, conduct environmental monitoring, and re-mediate the site.

"We're proud to be working alongside Murihiku Rūnaka and Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu in continuing this important mahi," NZAS chief executive Chris Blenkiron said in a statement to RNZ.

"Their guidance will be invaluable as we progressively re-mediate the site.

"This agreement reinforces the commitments we've made to remove waste and re-mediate the site, irrespective of the smelter's future."

Head of Te Rūnaka o Awarua, the group leading the partnership on behalf of the iwi, Tā Tipene O'Regan, said this was a chance to look at the future of the whenua.

Representatives from Murihiku Rūnaka and Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu sign the agreement. Photo / RNZ

"I have always believed there is a future for this land. Now we can engage in responsible environmental management and look at a long-term future for Tīwai," he said.

The smelter's future is still uncertain but, regardless, mana whenua want the site cleaned up and the land restored.

The agreement also represents a commitment by the iwi to share mātauranga Māori and kōrero tuku iho (history and traditions) relative to Tīwai.

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This will support the owners to responsibly manage the environment as the future of the smelter is determined, they said.

A report by Environment Southland last month found ongoing contamination at the site near Motupōhue/Bluff.