A daily wrap of all the main developments in the Covid-19 Delta outbreak as New Zealand is plunged into lockdown for the fifth time. Video / Mark Mitchell / Brett Phibbs / Michael Craig
A "steady stream" of boaties cruising around Coromandel's Mercury Islands and the occasional rule-breaker in the surf are being told to stay home as New Zealand's Covid-19 restrictions continue.
The Coromandel's resident surfer population is being tested today with clean swells rolling in and surfers having to stay out of the water to adhere to level 4 lockdown rules.
A very small number have breached the rules, however, and local police say they are doing their best to monitor wherever they can.
People are going to the more remote beaches and boating around offshore islands.
Nick Kelly, the Department of Conservation's Coromandel operations manager, says reports from people with properties looking out over the islands of pleasure boats out cruising were a worry.
This was not only for breaches of the level 4 rules but because unauthorised visits to pest-free islands risks compromising the biosecurity of the islands and years of conservation work.
The Coromandel's resident surfer population is getting tested today with clean swells rolling in and surfers having to stay out of the water to adhere to level 4 lockdown rules.
"It's critical people do not make landfall on predator-free islands and risk introducing pests," Kelly says.
"These islands are sanctuaries to some of New Zealand's most endangered species which are in 'perpetual lockdown' to ensure their survivability."
He said pleasure boating there was "completely unacceptable".
Species include saddleback, red-crowned kakariki, little spotted kiwi, kaka, and the Mercury Island tusked weta. Critically endangered plants found there include milk tree and Cook's scurvy grass.
DoC invests significant funding and hundreds of staff hours annually in keeping several of the Mercury Islands pest-free. The department spent $156,000 on work in the Mercury Islands last financial year.
"We've got reliable information – from my staff and the crew of an essential supply vessel - about a steady stream of boats making their way to Ahuahu and the wider archipelago during this lockdown," Kelly says.
"The islands are not a part of boaties' immediate 'local area', and access to these islands for recreational activities is not permitted."
Conservation work on the Mercury Islands pre-dates DoC. Before DoC's creation (1987), the NZ Forest Service carried out pest control, targeting feral goats and cats, since the 1960s. The first rat eradication began with Korapuki in 1986.
Thames-Coromandel District Council has closed all boat ramps and wharves to the public during alert level 4. The council say commercial fishers continue to operate as an essential service and are put at risk by members of the public who wander onto wharves.
However, boats have been seen from the mainland included from Tairua township.
The carpark was empty at Tairua and Whangamatā but at more remote surf beaches to the north, one man in the water breached lockdown rules and was surfing alone.
Surfers are being distracted from the swells with online training sessions provided by a doctor of sport science and strength and condition coach, Dr Olly Farley, through the Surfing New Zealand Facebook page.
Coromandel Police have been patrolling extensively but say they have been relying on reports being entered to capture some breaches.
"We are doing our best to get around everywhere we can," said Whangamatā Police Sergeant Will Hamilton.
Nick Kelly said DoC is also committed to stamping out the virus and keeping communities safe from Covid-19.
"Anyone caught breaking the Covid-19 rules will be reported."
The country has been in a level 4 lockdown since August 17 when cases of the highly infectious Delta variant emerged in Auckland. Level 4 means everyone should stay at home, with a small number of exceptions – primarily for people considered essential workers.
Police are encouraging people to report Covid rule breaches via their 105 non-emergency number and online reporting system.
The system is experiencing heavy loads and to prioritise police time, the online reporting does not allow for a form to be submitted if the breach does not cause possible harm to someone, risk of spreading the Covid‐19 virus, or gatherings of people breaching restrictions.
The public can also report Covid-19 level breaches through Covid-19 compliance section of the official Government website, which DoC is promoting https://covid19.govt.nz/alert-levels-and-updates/covid-19-compliance/.
Further south, in DoC's Hauraki district, Kauaeranga Valley Rd near Thames, public conservation land has been closed. The closure is to prevent people entering the valley to go tramping or hunting in what is usually a popular conservation recreation area.
The Broken Hills recreation area has closed to the public, all closures remaining until Covid-19 alert levels drop and New Zealanders can again enjoy the outdoors beyond the immediate vicinity of their homes.
All DoC Great Walks, huts, campsites and other facilities nationwide are closed, and people must not go hunting, fishing from boats, tramping, skiing or swimming, or do any water-based activities or other activities that expose them to danger, or which may require search and rescue services.
People are also prohibited from isolating in DoC huts, lodges or campsites.
A dedicated DoC team of between two and eight staff carry out work on the islands, using trained rat-detecting dogs, weed control, track maintenance and species surveys.
