Taranaki Maunga, the second-highest mountain on New Zealand’s North Island, along with its surrounding peaks, has been granted legal personhood, becoming the third natural feature in the country to receive the same rights, duties, and protections as an individual.
New Zealand’s parliament unanimously passed the law on January 30, 2025, fulfilling a promise made in 2017. The mountain, formally known as Taranaki Maunga, will now be referred to officially by its Māori name, shedding its former colonial designation, Mount Egmont. The legal personhood status extends to the surrounding peaks and environment, collectively named Te Kāhui Tupua.
Taranaki Maunga is one of the most symmetrical volcanic cones in the world, towering over the Taranaki plains on the west coast of the North Island. A popular tourist destination, it is believed to be the most climbed mountain in the country. However, beyond its scenic grandeur, the mountain holds deep cultural and spiritual significance for Taranaki Māori, who regard it as an ancestor. The new designation is a long-awaited acknowledgment of this relationship.
Hundreds of Taranaki iwi (tribe) members travelled to the capital, Wellington, to witness the bill’s final reading. The public gallery of parliament was filled with iwi members, who erupted into waiata (song) in celebration after the bill was passed, reported British daily The Guardian.
Chief negotiator for Taranaki Mounga, Jamie Tuuta, told The Guardian that the moment was met with mixed emotions, marking both a historic achievement and a reminder of past struggles.
The law change is the final step in a 2016 settlement in which Taranaki iwi secured reparations over breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi, New Zealand’s founding document signed in 1840 between Māori chiefs and the British Crown.
Under the new framework, the interests of Te Kāhui Tupua will be represented by a group of appointees from both iwi and the Crown, ensuring shared governance and protection of the mountain’s legal rights.
Taranaki Maunga follows in the footsteps of Te Urewera, a former national park granted legal personhood in 2014, and the Whanganui River, which gained the same status in 2017. These landmark decisions reflect an evolving approach to environmental protection and Indigenous rights in New Zealand, embedding Māori perspectives of guardianship and kinship with nature into the legal system.