Re-Imagining Wild Rivers in Aotearoa New Zealand

Gary Brierley, Ian Fuller (), Gary Williams, Dan Hikuroa and Alice Tilley
Additional contact information
Gary Brierley: School of Environment, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
Ian Fuller: School of Agriculture & Environment, Massey University, Palmerston North 4442, New Zealand
Gary Williams: Waterscape Ltd., Ōtaki 5583, New Zealand
Dan Hikuroa: Māori Studies, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
Alice Tilley: School of Environment, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand

Land, 2022, vol. 11, issue 8, 1-20

Abstract: If wilderness is dead, do wild rivers exist and if so, in what form and in whose construction? This reflective article reviews perspectives on rivers in Aotearoa New Zealand as wild or tamed entities. A historical overview of the socio-cultural and institutional relationships with rivers examines the meanings of rivers in Aotearoa New Zealand through multiple lenses. This includes indigenous Māori knowledge, command-and-control mentalities of a settler society that assert human authority over rivers, the emergence of the environmental movement and associated legislation with a sustainability focus (the Resource Management Act), and recent movement towards co-governance arrangements that incorporate the original intent of Te Tiriti o Waitangi (1840). It is contended that management practices have disconnected society from rivers, and vice versa, creating a sense of environmental loss (solastalgia), especially for Māori. Using rivers in the Greater Wellington Region as examples, prospects to accommodate wild river behaviour in Aotearoa New Zealand are explored. Recognising that re-wilding is no longer a feasible option in most instances, further attempts to tame rivers are also considered to be unrealistic, especially in light of climate change and accentuated flood risk. Reconnecting with indigenous knowledge offers prospects to re-imagine wild rivers in Aotearoa, living generatively with rivers as dynamic and emergent entities.

Keywords: socio-ecology; river management; mātauranga Māori; space to move; re-wilding (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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