KEY POINTS:
A land swap involving conservation land is still the most likely option to put the iconic Ngunguru sandspit into public ownership, the Department of Conservation says.
Conservation Minister Steve Chadwick and Associate Conservation Minister Mahara Okeroa met representatives of sandspit owner Landco at Tutukaka in April in a bid to kick- start a deal for the sandspit.
Ms Chadwick told the Northern Advocate at the time that after seeing the sandspit she was determined to save it from development.
Landco has run into stiff opposition to its plans to subdivide the sandspit into 350 sections covering 36ha, with another 85ha in reserve.
The Department of Conservation's Northland conservator Chris Jenkins said negotiations with Landco had been ongoing since and both sides were determined to come up with a solution that satisfied everyone.
Mr Jenkins said while no firm offer had been made, a land swap involving a piece of conservation land was the most likely option.
"In the background we are putting in a lot of energy into this, Landco and ourselves, and we are keeping the Ngunguru Sandspit Protection Society in the loop as well," Mr Jenkins said.
"And while we don't have a specific proposal, we are trying to identify some parcels of land we can take forward."
He was reluctant to put a timeframe on when an offer was likely to be made.
"It is not as easy as it appears. The sandspit is a substantial piece of land that is very valuable and Landco would expect something of similar value," Mr Jenkins said.
"We would also have to look at whether the land has any claims over it and how it came to be in DoC's ownership - was it taken under the Public Works Act for instance?"
He said any land swap would have to be done properly, or risk causing further problems.
"The last thing we would want to do is rush in and make a mess of things and then have to spend years untangling it and people having grievances. It's complex and difficult, but we all have a commitment to making it happen. This issue won't go away so we have got to keep working on it."
Landco spokesman George Hulbert said the company was progressing discussions with DoC about a possible exchange.
- NORTHERN ADVOCATE
