Story: Estuaries

Whitebaiting, Kaituna River

Whitebaiting, Kaituna River

The Kaituna River runs from Lake Rotorua to Maketū estuary in the Bay of Plenty. It is a traditional eeling and whitebaiting river of the Ngāti Pikiao people (Te Arawa tribe). This picture from 1931 shows a local whitebaiter in action. In 1978, six members of the tribe took a claim to the Waitangi Tribunal objecting to a scheme that would pipe effluent from Rotorua into the river and out to Maketū estuary. The claimants argued that the proposed scheme would pollute their food-gathering areas. In 1984 the tribunal found in favour of the claimants and the Crown withdrew support for the pipeline scheme.

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Reference: 1545 PhotoCD 10 IMG 0009

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How to cite this page:

Maggy Wassilieff, 'Estuaries - People and estuaries', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/4646/whitebaiting-kaituna-river (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Maggy Wassilieff, published 12 Jun 2006