THE MOORING LINE - Waikato Regional Council
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Summer 2020
Issue 10
THE MOORING LINE
BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE MARITIME SERVICES TEAM
AT WAIKATO REGIONAL COUNCIL
WELCOME IN THIS NEWSLETTER
Happy New Year and welcome to the tenth edition of The Mooring Line. • New marine pest at
Great Barrier Island
There are more than 800 moorings in the Waikato, which means you are part of a large
community of mooring owners who may or may not live in the Waikato region. The Mooring • Mooring for sale or rent? We can help.
Line newsletter is a helpful way to keep up to date with the region’s news, local information • Tips to avoid mooring mishaps
and tips on ways to keep our beautiful harbours and inland waters safe for everyone. • 2020 mooring inspections
Please pass this newsletter on to anyone who you know is looking at renting or buying a • Tairua mooring update
mooring. • Things mooring owners should
regularly do
Safe boating this season!
• Check your inflatables
The Maritime Services team • MarineMate
NEW MARINE PEST AT GREAT
BARRIER ISLAND
A new marine pest, Clavelina oblonga, a sea squirt commonly known
as “little bottles”, has been discovered at Great Barrier Island.
This type of sea squirt is newly detected in New Zealand, with the
only known population at Great Barrier Island.
These sea squirts form dense, clear and gelatinous looking colonies
which can overgrow mussel and oyster farms and compete with
other plant and animal species in the native environment.
The long distance spread of Clavelina oblonga is through vessel
biofouling, ballast water or aquaculture stock movement.
So, as always, ensure you have a clean hull as this will help prevent
its spread. Remember: clean below, good to go.
If you think you’ve seen something suspiciously like Clavelina
oblonga, take a photo, collect a sample, record the location and call
the Ministry for Primary Industries on 0800 80 99 66.
Photo: Samantha Happy, Auckland Council Photo: Xavier Turon and Maria Casso
MOORING FOR SALE OR
RENT? WE CAN HELP.
We are now offering mooring owners a new web service
to list their mooring for sale or rent. It’s simple to use
and an easy way for renters or buyers to view essential
information about moorings.
The website also offers safe mooring tips to help prevent
mooring mishaps.
See www.waikatoregion.govt.nz/moorings-4-sale-or-rent
for more information.
TIPS TO AVOID
MOORING MISHAPS
Mooring owners need to be vigilant of
who is using or renting their mooring
North
WAIKATO REGION
over the busy summer period and should
contact their harbourmaster if there is an Waikato region Coromandel
HARBOURMASTERS
unauthorised vessel on their mooring. Whitianga Thames/Coromandel (town)
Rod Edwards 021 877 52
Stuart Crawley - 027 480 9767
For safety reasons, any vessel tied to a
mooring must be of suitable length and Pauanui Whitianga
Peter Head 027 476 2651
weight as stated in its resource consent.
Barry King (deputy)
This will help to ensure the vessel Thames
021 913 679
doesn’t break off and cause danger to Tuakau Tairua/Pauanui/Whangamata
people and neighbouring boats. Whangamata Stephen Wise - 021 594 563
Meremere
Lake Karapiro to Port Waikato
Things to remember when renting Port Waikato Paeroa West Coast - Raglan
out your mooring: Toby Kemp - 021 705 642
• Contact your local mooring Inland - Lake Arapuni to Aratiatia
Huntly
inspector or harbourmaster to West coast - Kawhia to Mokau
Chris Bredenbeck - 027 677 2107
confirm suitability before lending/ Ngāruawāhia Morrinsville
renting out your mooring. Lake Taupo - Department of
Raglan Hamilton
Internal Affairs
• It is the mooring consent holder’s Phone: (07) 378-7176
Lake Karapiro
responsibility and liability to ensure Email: harbourmaster@dia.govt.nz
Tirau
the mooring is suitable for the vessel
Pirongia
it holds. Kāwhia Taharoa 0800 800 401
Tokanui Putaruru
• Before renting out your mooring,
Taharoa
you must check: Ōtorohanga
TOKOROA
– the length of the vessel
for your mooring Te Kūiti Mangakino
– the swing room your mooring Piopio
allows for the vessel Benneydale
– that the weight of the block can Mokau
Taupō
hold the weight of the vessel
– what hardware is suitable for
specific vessels
– whether your mooring is suitable for multi or mono-hull.
Tūrangi
Always check your resource consent or latest inspection report
for details.
MOORING INSPECTIONS
All mooring areas are unique and this sometimes determines what
type of wearing occurs to a mooring. Some areas are on the open
sea and are affected by swells and winds, while others are located
in harbours which can experience flooding from rivers and an
influx of debris. These are just a few of the things to consider when
maintaining your mooring to ensure it stays in good condition.
Moorings located in Flaxmill Bay and Cooks Beach are due for
inspection from March 2020, and most of Whitianga Harbour
moorings are due later in the year. Now is a great time to start
engaging with your local mooring service provider and booking your
A worn mooring chain that hadn’t been inspected in over three years
mooring in for a service.
COOKS BEACH AND FLAXMILL BAY MOORINGS
Moorings in Cooks Beach and Flaxmill Bay are mainly affected
by the swell and choppy sea conditions, which cause them to be
constantly moving. With this constant movement in water, the metal
components are gradually eroded and can wear down below Waikato
Regional Council’s minimum recommended specification.
We also find that the moorings in these locations get a lot of heavy
marine growth on the buoys, ropes and chains. While this will be
cleaned during an inspection, we do recommend the mooring owners
regularly check and clean off any shell growth to prevent damage to
the rope where it attaches to the chain. A rubber protection sleeve on the chain helps to prevent shell growth
IS YOUR MOORING INSPECTION DUE?
WINDY BUOYS Your local service provider will be available to provide an inspection service
for your mooring. They will check all parts of the mooring during the
Pick-up buoys are commonly run over or cut off by other
inspections and look out for components that show considerable wear.
people in the area. Contractors recommend adding a windy
The top chain, shackle and swivel are all parts that move underwater when
buoy to their mooring. A windy buoy helps to:
there is a boat on a mooring.
• find the mooring
• pick up the buoy in the event it does get cut off Your service provider will generally give you a call and recommend
• make it easier for you to pick up as you will not have to lift replacements according to compliance with council requirements and
the chain off the seabed. the safety of your boat on the mooring.
The Maritime Services team will be posting out reminder letters along
with booking forms on behalf of Trojan Marine and Bay Marine Works
this month. If your inspection is due, it is worth taking advantage of
the group service offer as you will generally get a better rate.
TAIRUA MOORING UPDATE “The only piece of main hardware we had to replace was one shackle as
there are minimal components that wear easily on the moorings in this
Tairua mooring inspections were completed in December this season. harbour. In Tairua, each mooring consists only of a weight, bottom chain,
Most of the moorings are still in great condition because of the quality top rope and pick-up buoy. Extra shackles, a top chain and swivel are
of hardware used and lack of wear. not required in this harbour as moorings require less swing room so it
eliminates the need for the lighter metal components that wear faster.”
We spoke to Laura Gilmore from Trojan Marine Services, who gave us
some insight into what they found. She said: It’s great to see the high rate of mooring compliance in Tairua, and we
appreciate those who continue to keep the harbour safe for everyone.
THINGS MOORING OWNERS SHOULD
REGULARLY DO
• Keep your pick-up buoy clean of marine growth – this will allow it to float better so that
boats can see it and not accidentally run it over.
• Check your mooring rope regularly. We have had some very strong winds over the summer,
and these cause boats to swing around on a mooring in a different manner. Check to see if
the rope is rubbing or chafing on the anchor or fairlead. If it looks like it may be damaged,
get in touch with the harbourmaster or your mooring contractor. It’s much better to take a
few minutes and have a look than have the rope break in the next big storm.
• Number your mooring to ensure harbourmasters and contractors can easily locate it.
CHECK YOUR INFLATABLES Regularly check your inflatable lifejacket to make sure:
1. the canister is free of rust, not punctured and is screwed in
This old inflatable correctly (canisters can be bought at your local marine retailer)
lifejacket was one that
2. the outer cover has no holes or signs of wear
was surrendered at a
Coastguard Old4New 3. there are no leaks/holes in the inflatable bladder (fully inflate it
lifejacket event last and leaving it overnight, if it’s soft the next day then you have a
season. The owner had leak)
been using it for a number 4. the straps are not worn or fraying.
of years without
frequently servicing or When purchasing an inflatable lifejacket, always read the
checking it. His kids had instructions.
also worn it out on the For more information and to view a servicing video visit
water a number of times. waikatoregion.govt.nz/lifejackets
When it came to activating
the lifejacket, it was
discovered that the canister was severely rusted and not screwed
in. When the owner saw this, it was a difficult moment for him
to imagine what would have happened if it was needed in an
emergency. He was devastated.
However, with the Old4New upgrade campaign he was able to swap
it for a discount on a brand new inflatable which he will now be sure
to check each season.
Remember, your inflatable lifejacket is your biggest hope of
survival in an emergency. Unfortunately, it’s also what most
people forget to check.
OC EA NS , RI VE RS & LA KE S
ALWAYS BRING
Y O U R M AT E !
DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE APP TODAY
H E TAIAO M AU R I O RA H EA LTHY E NVIR O NME NT For more information call Waikato Regional Council
on 0800 800 401 or visit waikatoregion.govt.nz.
H E Ō H AN GA PA KA R I ST R O NG E CO NO MY
H E HAP O R I H I H I R I V I BRA NT CO MMU NITIE S Summer 2020
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