Akaroa Harbour Marine Reserve
What was the outcome of the application?
The proposal to create a marine reserve in Akaroa Harbour was declined by the Hon Kate Wilkinson, Minister of Conservation, on 20 August 2010. The Minister upheld the objection that declaring the area to be a marine reserve will adversely affect the existing use of the area for recreational fishing.
A misty Akaroa Harbour
The Minister's decision ends the 1996 Akaroa marine reserve application, by the Akaroa Harbour Marine Protection Society.
Background on the application
The application for the Akaroa Harbour (Dan Rogers) Marine Reserve was notified by the Akaroa Harbour Marine Protection Society on 6 January 1996.
The Minister of Conservation, with the agreement of the applicants and principal stakeholders, subsequently suspended consideration of the application pending the establishment of a taiāpure in Akaroa Harbour. The taiāpure came into effect on 31 March 2006. The application was therefore once again in front of the Minister.
The Minister's first priority was to obtain updated views from the public on the application, considering the time that had lapsed since the application was first notified (1996).
A second public submission process was undertaken in June 2006, and the submissions were analysed and incorporated into a report for the Minister. The original submissions/objections were also taken fully into account by the Minister.
Why Akaroa Harbour?
The area is notable for spectacular volcanic cliffs, sea caves and sea stacks. The underwater topography is likewise spectacular, with the cliffs and bluffs falling vertically to the seabed and colonised by marine communities which exhibit interesting zonation patterns. At the base of bluffs in some areas (notably at Dan Rogers Bluff) there are huge room-sized boulders that provide spectacular underwater scenery and habitat for marine communities typical of parts of the exposed Banks Peninsula coastal environment.
What were the boundaries?
The proposed location of Akaroa Harbour Marine Reserve was in the south eastern area of Akaroa Harbour, Banks Peninsula, in the vicinity of Dan Rogers Bluff, hence the colloquial reference to the application as "Dan Rogers". The proposed area extended from Manukatahi stream, near Nine Fathom Point (Lat. 43°, 51.48' S and Long 172°, 56.55' E) around the head of Akaroa Harbour to Gateway Point (Lat. 43°, 53.52' S and Long 172°, 59.05' E). The proposed area followed a line bearing 220° T (true north) from the coast to the line described by the Wainui leading lights and covered an area of 530 ha (approximately 12% of the Harbour).
What did the community think about the proposal?
From the outset the proposal drew both support and opposition, and this was reflected in the submissions received on the first notified application in 1996. In total, 3043 submissions were received:
- 709 opposed the proposal
- 2334 were in support
In 2006, 75 submissions were received:
- 25 opposed the proposal
- 48 were in support
- 2 were in conditional support
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