Row breaks out over visitors to Moko

Whakatane District Council is to try to sort out a stoush over who has the right to carry passengers from Whakatane wharf to wherever Moko the dolphin is cavorting.

Diveworks operator Phil van Dusschoten has permission from the Department of Conservation to operate a commercial ferry service to Moko, while council-appointed "Moko minders" also take passengers in their Moko Mobile inflatable rigid boat for a voluntary donation.

A disagreement has flared up between the two parties.

Minder Kirsty Carrington said she believed Mr van Dusschoten was trying to take the Moko Mobile off the water because their operation was hurting his business.

She said the minders were providing a valuable service for people who could not afford to pay the ferry fee, and if they stopped some people would miss out or endanger themselves swimming in the river.

"I won't go down easy, I won't allow that to happen, and I won't allow people in the community to miss out on this once in a lifetime experience because they don't have $2 or $5 or whatever."

Ms Carrington said Mr van Dusschoten was refusing to talk to the minders directly about his complaints.

Mr van Dusschoten told the Whakatane Beacon he did not want to engage in stone-throwing with the minders, but said he had taken the appropriate measures to gain permission for his ferry service including having a surveyed charter vessel, a licensed skipper, and a marine mammals permit.

The minders were operating a "pseudo dolphin watching service" by carrying passengers, and he was concerned their vessel was not up to safety standards.

He said when Moko first arrived in town, the three licensed dolphin watching operators in Whakatane - Whale and Dolphin Watch, White Island Tours and Diveworks - were appointed as his guardians by the Department of Conservation (DOC).

He said he felt like "public enemy number one" in the eyes of the minders because he had spoken out on the internet, concerned about possible attempts to train or manage Moko by people spending a lot of time with him.

Mr Van Dusschoten said he had no problems with the minders helping manage people in the water interacting with Moko, and agreed they needed a vessel to keep up with Moko's ever-changing location.

Council chief executive Diane Turner said she had received a complaint from Mr van Dusschoten about the Moko Mobile - which was bought by the Whakatane Community Board and is owned by the council - being used as a ferry.

She said the minders were doing a great job but the Moko Mobile was "not purchased to provide a ferry service".

"The council's view on this is that transportation of anybody is always incidental to the main aim, which is for the minders to ensure that people do not get themselves into trouble and that people do not harass Moko."

She said every effort had been made to make the boat safe and from day one there had been lifejackets on board - though by law they did not have to be worn in the river.

DOC Gisborne/Whakatane area manager Andy Basset said the department had heard stories about continued disagreements between "different local parties", but said it was up to the individuals concerned to sort them out.

"Moko himself is capable of regulating and controlling his interactions with people."

- NZPA