The CNI Forests Collective Settlement is the largest Treaty of Waitangi settlement in New Zealand history.
Under the CNI Forests Collective Settlement, members of the Collective received:
- 90% by value of the 176,000 hectares of Crown forest lands in the Central North Island.
The remaining 10% is being held in trust by the Crown while the claims of iwi outside of the Collective are settled, and cultural redress is provided for members of the Collective. Currently that land is rented out to commercial businesses, under agreements called Crown Forest Licences (CFLs). The vast majority of the settlement land is part of Kaingaroa Forest. - All of the licence rentals accumulated on the settlement lands since 1990. These “assets” were returned to members of the Collective on July 1 2009. The settlement also includes:
- New Zealand Units (NZUs or “carbon credits”) under the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme.
- Preferential rights to buy certain Crown properties - RFR & DSPs.