Tauranga council to have its say on Rena

Tauranga City Council will have its day in court on the controversial issue of whether the wreck of the Rena should be left on Astrolabe Reef.

The council today debated whether or not it should make its views known on the resource consent application lodged by the Astrolabe Community Trust to leave the remains of the Rena on the seabed.

With the application to the Bay of Plenty Regional Council expected to be referred directly to the Environment Court, the council decided a submission provided the opportunity to state its views on the proposal and to be involved with the decision making process.

Council's acting team leader for consents, Brad Bellamy, said a neutral submission allowed the council to set out the additional information or conditions that it thought should be considered in arriving at a decision on the application.

The submission will be prepared by council staff without a separate peer review in order to save money and allow time for the submission to be circulated to councillors prior to being lodged.

Submissions needed to be specific and to focus on environmental effects and any matters of concern, Mr Bellamy said.

The application by the community trust, which included 17 technical assessments, was publicly notified by the council on June 13, with the closing date for submissions on August 8.