The Tribunal's findings endorse submissions by three Motiti Island groups - Ngai te Hapu, Motiti Rohe Moana Trust and Maatatahua District Maori Council - who gave evidence at the inquiry.
Tauranga Mayor Stuart Crosby said the Tribunal's findings were not surprising. But he said the Crown had not only failed its obligations to Maori but local government agencies were also left out of the negotiations.
Mr Crosby said the full council would be meeting next week to decide whether to make a submission on the resource consent application and he would be recommending it does so.
"It's far better to be inside the room than out," he said.
However, Mr Crosby said the latest expert information to hand, being peer reviewed by the Bay of Plenty Regional Council and others, was that given the deteriorating state of the wreck, total removal appeared impossible. If a submission was made to support the resource consent, council would be seeking strict conditions.
Ngai te Hapu spokesman Buddy Mikaere said the judgment would have a big impact on future decision-making. "We think this decision is quite a critical one in terms of the Government's future decisions. It was as much a test of how the Crown responds to environmental issues but also a very clear test of the Government's ability to live up to its obligations as a true Treaty partner," he said.
Motiti Rohe Moana Trust spokesman Hugh Sayers agreed.
"We are hopeful the ministers will take notice and respond with the urgency required, and that the interests of the Bay of Plenty environment and community will be protected before the financial interest of the insurers," he said.
Three deed settlements with Rena's owners were signed in October 2012, but the Crown consultation with local iwi and hapu on a likely resource consent application to leave the wreck on the reef did not start until November last year.
That included the Crown and Rena's owner, Daina Shipping Company, signing a wreck removal deed under which the Government would be paid $10.4 million if a resource consent was granted. Last month, Rena's owners applied for a resource consent to do so.
The Tribunal called on the Government to release all its expert reports on the subject to Maori immediately, and to consider how it could actively assist Maori to make their own submissions.
The Tribunal has also suggested the Local Government Minister make her own submission on the consent application in her capacity as the territorial authority for Motiti.
It also recommended a raft of factors the Government should take into account on July 28 when the Cabinet meets to decide whether to support the application.
Hugo Shanahan, a spokesman for Rena's owners and insurers, said the owner acknowledged the cultural impacts of the damage done to the reef and surrounding environment, and recently settled claims made by Motiti Island iwi (among others) for the cultural harm done.
Technical assessments undertaken to support the resource consent application identified there would be no more than minor environmental effects, he said.
In a statement, a spokesman for Attorney-General Christopher Finlayson said the Crown would carefully consider the Tribunal's report before deciding what stance, if any, to take on the Rena owners' application to leave the wreck where it was.
The Crown was not the decision-maker in relation to a consent application to leave the Rena wreck in place - that was likely to be the Environment Court.
Submissions on the consent application close on August 8.
Other Waitangi Tribunal recommendations:
- When the Crown decides whether to make a submission on the resource consent it should take into account: - The adverse effects of Rena's rapidly degrading form on the reef, the potential for the release of further discharges & contaminants.
- The significant effects on Maori due to the limited use of their taonga: If granting the resource consent would impose adverse effects on the environment and the Motiti community, that the feasibility of removal or mitigation of adverse effects may differ depending on which parts of the wreck and debris under consideration for retention.
- If the Crown decides to make a submission, it should: (a) Submit to the consent decision-maker to accept Otaiti Reef is a taonga, and its protection is of national importance (b) Make sure it "very visibly" protects Motiti Maori interests (c) Ensure it seeks monitoring and mitigation conditions to reduce the effects to a "sustainable level" as far as possible.
To view the full Tribunal report visit www.justice.govt.nz/tribunals/waitangi-tribunal
