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For the iwi Ngāti Rangi the rivers and streams are tūpuna awa and are accorded ancestral heritage; their well-being cannot be separated from the well-being of the people and the natural world and people are inter-connected. The flow of water from the mountains to the sea must not be broken. Tūpuna awa include the river beds, catchment areas, the habitats, fish and other biodiversity. The rivers and springs were important sources of food. Eels lived in the tributaries of the Whangaehu River and would have had to pass through the river to migrate to the sea. The iwi also bathed in the Whangaehu for its healing properties. Fishing also took place on the Moawhango River where the dam is now and the river was a key waterway used for east-west travel and trade with east coast iwi Ngāti Whitikaupeka.

Ngāti Rangi had been opposed to the use of water from rivers and streams in the Eastern Diversion since the 1970s. Diverting water into the project caused waterways to dry up and the loss of wildlife. In 2001 Genesis was granted resource consents to continue diverting water from the Whanganui, Whangaehu and Moawhango rivers for 35 years but the iwi appealed to the Environment Court on the grounds that 35 years was too long. Ngāti Rangi requested that their values be considered alongside western science, that they have rights of ownership of tūpuna awa and for restoration of cultural and spiritual values lost in the diversion of the river flows. In 2004 the Court reduced the resource consent to 10 years taking on board cultural considerations under the Resource Management Act 1991. Genesis objected to the 10 year period taking the case to the High Court which in 2006 found that the shorter period was weighted in the iwi's favour and requested the Environment Court to reconsider the term. The iwi appealed the High Court decision. In 2009 the High Court found that the Environment Court could not reduce the consent to 10 years and required the two parties to find a solution. In 2010 Genesis and Ngāti Rangi formed a partnership to find ways to restore water flows in the rivers. Genesis's resource consent expires in 2039. (Genesis website)

In 2017 the Crown and Ngāti Rangi reached an agreement in principle to settle historical Treaty of Waitangi claims followed by a settlement deed in 2018 which included arrangements for the governance of the Whangaehu River and protection of the river's catchment. The 2019 legislation created the framework called Te Waiū-o-Te-Ika which recognises the intrinsic connection between the awa and the iwi and hapū of the Whangaehu.

River flows have been reinstated for several rivers including the Tokiāhuru. Monitoring the health of the Whangaehu catchment area has been part of the partnership between the iwi and Genesis. The following rivers have been monitored for clarity, temperature, acidity and oxygen levels: Tokiāhuru, Wāhianoa, Mākahikatoa, Tomowai and Whangaehu.