Woody debris littered Tolaga Bay/Ūawa beach on Wednesday - the same day the panel undertaking an independent inquiry into forestry slash and land use went to the East Coast town to hear first-hand from locals about the fallout from recent storm events. Photo: Supplied/ Local Democracy Reporting - Matthew Rosenberg
Exhaustion, frustration and an air of sadness could be felt at a Tolaga Bay/Ūawa meeting as people shared emotional accounts of the impact of slash on the back of recent cyclones.
The government's panel for an independent ministerial inquiry into forestry slash and land use arrived in the small East Coast town of 800 people on Wednesday, to hear from those directly impacted.
The inquiry was launched last month on the back of January's ex-tropical Cyclone Hale and February's Cyclone Gabrielle which pounded the East Coast, cutting off communities and littering beaches and waterways with logs.
A key message which emerged from Wednesday's meeting was the devastating effect forestry waste was having on Māori - impacting kaimoana collection and desecrating wāhi tapu (sacred spaces).
Puketawai Marae co-secretary Hana Parata-Walker painted a desperate picture of how much had changed in just one generation.
"Kaimoana gathering is increasingly dangerous as beaches and waterways are filled with slash," she said.
"The kai itself is missing along the rocks, which are inundated with slash of all sizes.
"We are no longer able to share our traditional kai gathering practices with our children."
Parata-Walker said there was no access to Tatarahaki, Karaka Bay and Kaiaua Bay because of silt and slash.
Wāhi tapu had been "bashed" by slash and logs, unearthing urupā (burial sites), tīpuna remains and taonga, she said.
Her 10-year-old daughter had never seen the beaches as they were supposed to be.
"We rely on our access to wai-tai (sea water) for physical, mental and spiritual well-being.
"This is a practice that our nannies have taught us since [we were] babies - the sea is a place of healing.
"If we have hakihaki (scabs), have a dip in the sea. If we're feeling mentally unwell, have a dunk in the sea.
"Without safe access to wai-tai, my 83-year-old nana, who has been doing this since she was a small girl, is unable to practise these ancient healing traditions which would be of huge benefit, especially in the troubling times we face."
Tolaga Bay Area School principal Nori Parata - the sister of ministerial inquiry chair Hekia Parata - said the cyclones had taken a mental toll on staff and students.
On top of that, forestry slash covering beaches and rivers seriously limited teachers' ability to make the curriculum "come alive".
"Once the beach was their playground, their learning environment. It's not just a mess, it's dangerous."
Parata-Walker and Parata were two of about 10 people who presented to the 70-strong crowd who gathered at Reynolds Hall.
Their concerns were heard by a panel of three, which included former National MP and cabinet minister Hekia Parata as chair, Matthew McCloy and Bill Bayfield.
The slash inquiry panel in Gisborne this week: from left Matthew McCloy, Hekia Parata and Bill Bayfield Photo: Local Democracy Reporting/ Gisborne Herald/ Paul Rickard
Hekia Parata has whakapapa to the East Coast, having been born in Waipiro Bay and completing her schooling at Gisborne Girls' High School.
She said she leapt at the opportunity to chair the inquiry because she had committed the "next chapters" of her life to working directly for Tairāwhiti.
"I'm not impartial. I'm absolutely partial to the best possible set of outcomes that this inquiry is able to deliver for this rohe of Ngāti Porou whānui, for Tūranganui-a-Kiwa and out to Te Wairoa."
The inquiry had been set for eight weeks. The first four were dedicated to engaging with communities, sector groups and individuals.
Hekia Parata said the panel had flown over damage and driven from Te Araroa to Ruatoria over "what masquerades as State Highway 35".
They had also met with Gisborne Mayor Rehette Stoltz, Wairoa Mayor Craig Little, Eastland Wood Council and the creators of the Mana Taiao Tairāwhiti petition - a January initiative which called for an inquiry.
The second half of the eight weeks would be dedicated to writing the report, which was due for presentation to Environment Minister David Parker and Forestry Minister Stuart Nash by 30 April.
Other members of the public who presented on Wednesday spoke of losing access to homes, fear of future rain events and the need to look back to cyclones prior to those of 2023.
Concluding the meeting, Hekia Parata's voice broke as she thanked those present for sharing their experience.
"Thank you very much for the honesty and the deep integrity with which you have told your stories, and asked for us to hear the pain that sits within them."
The inquiry would move south to Wairoa next week, then travel back up the Coast to Tokomaru Bay.
Other public meetings:
27 March, 6pm-8.30pm, at Wairoa War Memorial, 103 Queen Street, Wairoa.
28 March, 9am-midday, at EIT council room, Palmerston Road, Gisborne. (Drop-in sessions - 15-minute slots).
29 March, 12.30pm-2pm, at Tokomaru Bay and online (email to receive a link RSVP ministeriallanduseinquiry@mfe.govt.nz).
Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air