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Wāhi Taonga me ngā wāhi whaipara

Wāhi Taonga and Archaeological Sites Review

Sites that are important to iwi/hapū and/or that have important archaeological values are identified and protected in the Part Operative District Plan 2025.

The information about sites was originally obtained from New Zealand Archaeological Association records and from iwi/hapū in the mid-1990s. Much of the geographical location information received was inaccurate, due in part to the transfer from imperial to metric measurements.

Inaccurately located symbols on the planning maps increased the risk that some sites might be destroyed, damaged or modified. There was also a significant impact on the day-to-day administration of the District Plan which led to inefficiencies.  

Despite efforts to improve the accuracy of this data there were on-going issues regarding the location and description of sites. A wider review of wāhi taonga and archaeological sites was initiated in 2007, to confirm the location of sites on the planning maps and to map their extents where possible, as and when iwi/hapū were available.  

The review focused on building relationships between landowners and iwi/hapū to ensure the protection and management of sites over time. The regulatory purposes of the review were:

  1. To confirm the location of the sites currently listed in the District Plan and where possible identify their extents; and
  2. To identify further sites and where possible their extents and their appropriateness for inclusion in the District Plan.

As a result, the Part Operative District Plan 2025 includes more accurately located symbols and extents on the planning maps for many of the sites in the New Plymouth District.  Whilst the District Plan includes updated and new site information for several hapū rohe (tribal areas), additional information for other hapū rohe is expected to become available over time. As this occurs, future plan changes will be required to the District Plan. Therefore, the review remains ongoing.

Page last updated: 10:00am Thu 25 June 2026

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