Ko te ingoa Maori mo tenei rohe ko te Moana a Toi-te-Huatahi, no muri iho a Kapene Kuki, nana te whakahua ko te ‘Bay of Plenty’. Ko tenei pare, ko Te Pare Honohono a Toi-te-Huatahi. Ko Toi hoki tera e hapai ra i nga taonga o te Taiao e kore ai e pau poka noa. Koia nei hoki te kaupapa putake a te kaunihera. Na reira, ko Toi tera e honohono nei i enei tikanga, mai i te ao tawhito a te Maori, ki naianei ki te ao hou a te Kaunihera.
Ko Te Hau Tutua o Ngati Awa te tohunga whakairo.
The Maori name for this region is the Ocean of Toi te Huatahi. Later Captain Cook named it the Bay of Plenty. The door lintel, located above the entry to Committee Room One, is called Te Pare Honohono a Toi te Huatahi, which means the lintel of linkage with Toi te Huatahi. It depicts Toi as steward of our environmental resources, ensuring they will not be squandered. This accords with Environment Bay of Plenty’s mission statement. Toi is effectively linking the old Maori world with the present world. Te Hau Tutua of Ngati Awa was the master carver that created this work.
Te Tokotoru
Ko enei moana kua rakaitia e nga manukura hai tohu mo ia rohe. Ki Tauranga he patiki na Pauline Borell o Pirirakau, ki Rotorua he poutama na Tina Wirihana o Ngati Te Rangiunuora, ki Whakatane he roimata toroa na Mere Walker o Te Whakatohea. Ko ratau nga manukura mo ia tira raranga.
The Trinity
These decorative panels were created by the craftspersons to typify each area of our region. (Top to bottom) For Tauranga area it is the flounder (patiki) by Pauline Borell of Pirirakau, for Rotorua area it is the eternal stairway of knowledge (poutama) by Tina Wirihana of Ngati Te Rangiunuora and for Whakatane area it is albatross tears (roimata toroa) by Mere Walker of Te Whakatohea (Opotiki). They were the leaders (manukura) of each weaving team.