About 40 people attended a hui about the reforms run by joint staff of the Ministries of Fisheries, Environment, Conservation, and Maori Development Ministry (Te Puni Kokiri) at the Heretaunga Taiwhenua in Hastings yesterday.

The departments have until the end of this month to complete consultation with Maori, a directive from the Waitangi Tribunal, before the process of amending the legislation restarts.

The reforms were delayed until the tribunal's recently released ruling, in favour of an iwi claim that the Crown had prejudiced Maori rights in relation to aquaculture by not including them from when the proposals were announced, in November 2001.

There had since been suggestions Maori be given a share of future development, and have input into information-gathering, at the submission stage and as applicants.

The proposals included giving regional councils the power to set aside aquaculture management areas, or AMAs, for farming, and running the tender process for areas of high demand with the ability to recover money from the applicants to pay costs and boost its marine science resources.

The Crown representatives agreed that they considered the Crown agencies had a special relationship with Maori as a Treaty partner but were unable to answer a question from Ngati Kahungunu Iwi Inc chairman Ngahiwi Tomoana asking why Maori were not then represented ahead of councils.

His comments drew quite a few loud murmurs of agreement from the crowd.

James Kenrick from Pakipaki said it appeared the Crown or its agents already assumed it owned the water space and no money would come to the so-called owners.

Kahungunu board executive committee chairman Christine Teariki believed the councils did not have a good track record of sustainable management.

"Common sense would be to give responsibility to iwi and allow the regional council (Hawke's Bay Regional Council) to use their resources according to iwi directions," she said.

Hawke's Bay-based Turanganui A Kiwa and Nga Tamanuhiri Family Trust chairman Na Reihania said the crucial issues were AMA ownership and managing the process.

"Clearly, the way to protect Maori interests in this venture is for Maori to be sitting at the table."

Several people at the hui raised the problem of councils being under-resourced to deal with marine issues, something which Ministry of Fisheries deputy chief executive and chairman of the inter-departmental committee on aquaculture reform Stan Crothers agreed with.

He told the hui the Crown would eventually have to address the issue of councils' capacity to do the job properly.