Remaking Muddy Blue Spaces: Histories of Human-Wetlands Interactions in the Waipā River and the Creation of Environmental Injustices

Abstract

This chapter focusses on the state-sponsored ecological transformation of Aotearoa New Zealand’s wetlands into grasslands under the auspices of settler colonialism, agricultural productivism, and public health. The physical removal of wetlands, we argue, were a constitutive part of the mechanisms of settler colonial domination. We demonstrate how the destruction of wetlands diminished the resilience of Indigenous Māori communities and contributed to a reduction in Māori wellbeing. We demonstrate that wetland loss was an environmental injustice that had specific implications for Māori peoples due to their material, socio-cultural, and spiritual connections. Lastly, we highlight how Māori agency whereby individuals used settler-colonial political and legal processes to try to mitigate damage to their wetlands, to exercise their responsibilities as kaitiaki (environmental guardians) and demand environmental justice.