Water rights trading possible, says forum

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Water rights trading possible, says forum

3News NZ

The issue of water ownership has been highlighted in a Maori Council case at the Waitangi Tribunal

The issue of water ownership has been highlighted in a Maori Council case at the Waitangi Tribunal

The Land and Water Forum is considering the issue of trading water rights as it prepares a report to Government this year.

Forum chairman Alistair Bisley said the current system of allocating water rights on a "first in, first served" basis worked when there was plenty of water but the system needed to be reviewed.

He told The Nation this morning that a market for water rights was an option the forum was considering. Another option was "bureaucratic mechanisms".

"So we're looking at a range of things, but one of them is definitely whether or not you need to use pricing mechanisms to allow it to be distributed more dynamically, to move to its best use over time," he said.

The forum brings together more than 80 water users, including power companies, dairy co-operative Fonterra, iwi and recreation and conservation organisations. It has been told to seek a consensus on water policy and has released two reports.

The issue of water ownership has been highlighted in a Maori Council case at the Waitangi Tribunal, which argues Maori own water and challenges the sale of state-owned energy companies, which generate power from water. Tribunal decisions are not binding on the Government.

Mr Bisley said he was not sure if there would be a single answer or single regime for water across the country.

"I think there's a big difference between owning something in the sense that it's yours and it's yours forever, and owning it in the sense that you have for a period of time a right to take it, or a right to use it."

He said New Zealand needed a more efficient and dynamic water system than currently existed.

NZN

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Comments

5/08/2012 12:42:20 p.m.

jack wrote:

David, I agree with you 100%. Corporate iwi have always wanted those electric turbines and now Key will give Maori a hefty amount of shares because he is more interested in taking that money out to give to his mates.. another sell out by Key. Disqusting!! And Corporate Iwi walk away with what they always wanted. The rest of us will just have to work harder.

15/07/2012 10:33:11 p.m.

josie wrote:

there are springs in the ground where the water comes from,the people that made the manchaine to get the water to the homes wantmoney,or regular the amount that we get,they can stop it,,,then we get f...all,

15/07/2012 10:31:15 p.m.

LISA R HETA wrote:

well NZ uz asked for dis n dis is wot u got th@s the prob with voting n national coz uz wanted new blood now th@ blood is selling our assets thinks the water is his wen the water does NOT belong to ne1. ALL I CAN SAY IS E KEY E KEY JOHN KEYS ur time will come wen ur hot ur hot wen ur NOT ur NOT

15/07/2012 3:49:57 p.m.

kiwi wrote:

What a Joke. With out the Rain from the Heavens we don't survive next it will be the wind that turn the tubines it's time to put a stop to this....

15/07/2012 12:55:11 p.m.

Cimberly Ward wrote:

no one owns the water , it all over the world ,and if some one did own it it would have to be (god ,not that i beleave in him) , for f sakes , so don't give the free water away ,coz then we all will be stuffed and we will have to pay and we dont need that ,we pay for a heap now ,and Maori think they own every think, were they don't coz they were not here first it was the Vikings or and the Morioris, im sick of them saying no you cant go there coz we own it ,NO ONE OWNS IT, NO ONE OWNS THE AIR OR TREES OR THE SKY ,,we are a freeland as our national anthem says , and if we are not a freeland then you would have to change the nation anthem ,because if you do , you will loose everyone who lives here and they will go to a better place , coz NZ is turning to shit if key keeps runing this place

15/07/2012 11:57:02 a.m.

Anaru wrote:

Wow Phil "These people" that hurts! its like saying "you people" to my face. Im surprised your concerned about the NZ Maori Council when it seems that corporations incl Iwi commercial entities (not the NZMC)could be attempting to create conditions for scarcity of water in order to make it a valuable commodity to be brought and sold and not a right of humanity. Its happened around the world already and we'd be silly to ignore it here.

15/07/2012 10:09:19 a.m.

David wrote:

@TWE... corporations already own our Prime Minister... so why not our water?. John Key is a corporate sellout... which is why policy like this will happen.

14/07/2012 5:58:47 p.m.

Phil wrote:

What do these people actually want, the water is still there after it passes through the turbines, its the people who remove the water that should have to pay something. No one owns the clouds that produce the water do they. and anyway any water they may have possibly have thought they owned has gone out to sea.

14/07/2012 1:57:52 p.m.

TWE wrote:

Water is too important to give control over it to corporations who can then hold us to ransom. No, no, no.