Tauranga iwi fighting for the removal of the shipwreck Rena have accused the Crown of breaching the Treaty of Waitangi by failing to disclose details of five key reports on issues associated with the salvage of the wreck.
Residents of Motiti Island submitted supplementary closing submissions this week as part of Waitangi Tribunal proceedings following Rena's 2011 grounding at Astrolabe Reef.
The submissions detailed iwi concern at the Crown's conduct in failing to disclose the content of five key reports from London Offshore Consulting (LOC) during tribunal proceedings.
The closing submissions say the reports detail how full wreck removal of Rena could be possible and the ship owner's argument of salvage being too dangerous was negated when Cyclone Lusi moved the stern beyond possible reach of human divers.
Other, cheaper and safer, options were available for the salvage of Rena but those had not been explored or included as options by the wreck's owner, Daina Shipping Company, the submissions state.