Call for jet ski and motorboat ban at Whangamatā estuary

A 200-signature petition seeking a ban on jet skis and small motorboats in a Whangamatā estuary isn’t backed by regional councillors.

Instead, the council will monitor the situation at Otahu Estuary and decide if it should bring forward a bylaw review, the strategy and policy committee decided on Wednesday.

Locals at the estuary, at the southern end of the beach, presented a petition to Thames-Coromandel constituency councillor and committee chair Warren Maher in January.

It objected to the use of powered personal watercraft, such as jet skis, and motorboats in the estuary, which has a five knot speed limit in place already.

“Concerns highlighted in the petition surround the interactions between swimmers, paddleboarders and [personal watercraft],” a staff report said.

In an interview on Wednesday, Maher said the main issue “seems to be just some nuisance jet ski operators”.

Families and children used the area “so it’s definitely a concern”.

Staff advice, however, was that the estuary was “generally a quiet area”, the report said.

The committee accepted a staff option to wait till the scheduled 2028 date before reviewing the council’s navigation safety bylaw.

But, in the meantime, the council will gather evidence about craft use in the estuary and analyse the viability of including it in a personal watercraft exclusion zone.

“The review can be brought forward down the track if it is deemed necessary,” the recommended option said.

But the report noted that taking this tack could cause dissatisfaction amongst petitioners.

Maher, however, said during the meeting that one of the petition leaders had on Wednesday seemed agreeable to the approach decided on by the council.

Regional harbourmaster Chris Bredenbeck said the council had sent staff to the area over Easter to monitor the situation at Otahu but no problems were identified.

“We get very few complaints of [personal watercraft] in that estuary.”

He said the shallow estuary generally wasn’t suitable for such craft except around high tide.

Maher said jet ski operators should be aware of speed limits and could be prosecuted if they exceeded these.

No dramas in this file shot of a jet ski and swimmers at Whangamatā - but residents are concerned at the potential dangers jet skis and motorboats pose in the Otahu Estuary.