KEY POINTS:
Landowners at a northern Hawkes Bay beach settlement say inaccurate data and flawed mapping will hamper their ability to carry out even simple repairs to their homes.
Submitters on plans for Mahanga Beach in Mahanga included sports commentator and former All Black Murray Mexted.
They asked the Hawkes Bay Regional Council to adopt the work done by their own expert, leading coastal erosion scientist Jeremy Gibb, over the council-commissioned Tonkin & Taylor report.
At a hearing in Napier, Mark Mahoney suggested the Tonkin & Taylor report, used to establish hazard zones, had not been signed or checked and should be taken only as a preliminary assessment.
Mr Mahoney, an engineer, had concerns about the "complete lack of accuracy of the work that underpins this hearing". He echoed the concerns of Te Awanga residents who submitted on Tuesday that no one had visited the site or undertaken site-specific work.
He also believed the regional council should stick to an advocacy role on coastal hazard and buildings issues and leave regulation to the territorial local authorities - in this case, the Wairoa District Council.
"Many people will need two resource consents from two different agencies to do even minor work. The costs will be phenomenal," he said.
"And then you add on that the plans are not accurate. Some people will need tens of thousands of dollars to clear their land title, when there may have been no issue at all due to HBRC inaccuracies."
As superior work, the "Gibb line" should be adopted and replace all other lines for Mahanga Beach, Mr Mahoney said.
Mr Mexted submitted he and two friends had been trying to pursue the Kiwi bach ideal on their land at Mahanga since 2004.
"Our hands feel tied while there is a dispute over the zones. We've been held up over some line drawn on a map that is inaccurate," he said.
They, too, commissioned Dr Gibb to undertake site-specific work.
Mr Mexted said he understood and accepted the risks of living so close to the sea, but "the motion of the ocean is very important to us and that's where we want to be. That's why this site is so special to us".
Dr Gibb presented evidence showing that the hazard lines in the plan were out by up to 50m in some cases.
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