Te Puna Tōpu o Hokianga Ahu Whenua Trust GM Andrew Kendall and Graeme Morrell (Chair) say it's been a long journey to reclaiming their whenua near Mitimiti.
Te Puna Tōpu o Hokianga Ahu Whenua Trust GM Andrew Kendall and Graeme Morrell (Chair) say it's been a long journey to reclaiming their whenua near Mitimiti.
A 50-year-long quest to return a forestry land block to a hapu-owned North Hokianga trust has finally been realised.
Roughly 1800ha of forestry near Mitimiti is now fully back in the hands of Te Puna Tōpu ō Hokianga Ahu Whenua Trust after recently settling a financial agreement with Summit ForestsNZ.
Trust GM and former chair Andrew Kendall said the dream of having their whenua totally under their control had been a long time coming.
Kendall explained the trust had been formed in the early 1970s as a way to attract investment for afforestation on ancestral land – a large portion of which was owned by the Crown.
Other surrounding blocks were consolidated under the trust to avoid alienation from unpaid rates, with Bill Welsh – an experienced forester and saw miller from Mitimiti working for Fletcher Forests in the Pacific Islands – was the main driver of the forest establishment.
“He and others managed to negotiate a deal with the Crown to return around 1500ha of the current land holding to the trust under the proviso the land went into forestry.”
From left: Major Waiomio (hau kāinga), Bill Welsh (hau kainga and main instigator of the forest being established in the 1970s) with Tupu Cambell (hau kāinga) circa 1989.
According to Kendall, the first radiata pine trees were planted in 1975 under a lease to Northern Pulp Ltd.
After that folded in the 1980s sharemarket crash, Japanese-owned company JNL took over the lease in the mid-80s, with Te Puna Tōpu o Hokianga Ahu Whenua Trust one of many Northern forestry leases re-assigned to JNL at the time.
Kendall explained the relationship between the Trust and JNL had been tumultuous for much of their tenure and it wasn’t until 2010-2012 that JNL finally sold its Northern Forest interests to Summit Forests NZ, along with its leases.
From there, Kendall said the first rotation harvesting was completed in 2018 and the lease, originally signed in the early 70s, expired in 2022.
“The trust had managed to replant most of the forest as it was harvested, except for 400ha, which was planted by JNL and still remained on the land on lease expiry under Summit Forests NZ,” Kendall said.
“The trust negotiated a value of those trees with Summit Forests NZ and recently settled with them which completed the long process started half a century ago.
“It’s been a battle to regain full control of our own whenua again, so we think it’s a major achievement and we’re very pleased with the outcome.”
Not only was the vision for the trust in the 1970s to take back the land but to provide employment for whānau of Mitimiti and nearby communities.
One of Te Puna Tōpu ō Hokianga Ahu Whenua Trust's new machines circa 2004, with machine operator Dan Campbell.
In 2019, Kendall said the trust purchased a separate 616ha block near Herekino.
Kendall explained that particular whenua had been out of Māori ownership for 100 years, so held significant importance for some trust beneficiaries who had whakapapa to the block.
He said the trust’s journey so far had been a “rollercoaster ride”, but that they were now in a strong position to move forward with confidence, with their aspirations not only confined to forestry, but a range of kaupapa.
“At the moment we’re in the process of understanding how to best manage the forest and to maximise its value to return the benefits back to our shareholders and beneficiaries,” Kendall said.
“We are looking into the option of a papakainga, as well as how we can best manage our wetlands and waterways in a way that we would like to.
“We are also exploring commercial opportunities that fit in with the tikanga of the whenua as there are many wāhi tapu and sensitive landscapes. We also want to provide opportunities for whānau, particularly the next generations, to come home.”
The Te Puna Tōpu ō Hokianga Trust is one of several Māori land trusts that form part of the Taitokerau Māori Forestry Collective Incorporated.
Launched in 2015, the collective is aimed at bringing Māori together to enhance their future in forestry.
