New Zealand Grants Personhood to a River

With corporations having been granted legal personhood in the United States a few years ago, you may be asking yourself whether or not non-human animals or parts of the environment could be granted such a vast array of rights and protection. Although not in the United States, a designation of a river as a legal person was recently requested and granted in New Zealand. The Whanganui River is the third largest river in the nation of New Zealand. The River is of mass significance to the local iwi, indigenousness people, who have not only relied on the River as a resource for generations but have also enjoyed the River’s natural beauty and use for recreation. The iwi have been fighting to have the River protected by the government from relentless pollution and unauthorized exploitation since 1837. Recently, New Zealand’s longest-running legal case celebrated a huge victory. In late August the iwi and New Zealand’s Parliament reached a preliminary settlement agreement which recognized the River as a legal entity enabling it to have legal standing and its own independent voice. The River will be recognized as “Te Awa Tupua,” the name given to it by the iwi and will be recognized in the same way a company is, which will give it protectable rights. The agreement also appointed two guardians – one from Parliament and one from the iwi – to represent the interests of the River. The New Zealand Minister of Treaty for Waitangi Negotiations, Christopher Finlayson, said the agreement recognizes the “inextricable relationship of iwi with the River.” He notes that the “iwi have not sought to have their relationship with the river defined in these settlement negotiations in terms of ownership of the riverbed or water, but have focused on recognizing the mana of the River from which the iwi’s mana flows, and on its future health and wellbeing.” This appears to be the first time in history a single river has ever been granted legal personhood anywhere in the world.