The Maori owners of Poroti Springs near Whangarei are devastated at a court decision allocating spring water to a council and an irrigation company for 35 years.
The Whatitiri Maori Trustees claim ownership of the water flowing from the springs based on a legal title granted in the late 1800s.
The Poroti hapu appealed to the Environment Court after Northland Regional Council granted the water rights to Whangarei District Council and the Maungatapere Water Company.
The trustees says the court's decision means they are shut out of exercising their rights over the Poroti water for another generation.
But the council and the company say they have invested in plant and equipment, and need the security of long-term consents.
