Telstra-Saturn jumps gun on Wellington cabling work

Cable operator Telstra-Saturn has been issued with an infringement notice for starting work too soon on laying a fibre-optic cable.

"The notice was sent yesterday," Wellington Regional Council resource consents manager Rob Forlong said.

"The company can either pay an instant fine of $500 or contest the matter in court."

The notice was issued after Telstra-Saturn allegedly started work without giving the council 14 days notice, as required as a condition of its resource consent.

It had also failed to supply the council with geological survey data before starting work.

Telstra-Saturn corporate projects director Lee Kil said the infringement was a minor issue.

"We didn't comply on a technical perspective.

"There have been numerous discussions with the regional council and we stopped work as soon as we were aware of the problem."

That issue aside, Mr Kil said the operation had gone well.

"We've had nothing but good feedback from beach users. The surf has been down so we have had no surfers."

Mr Kil said contractors had not encountered any problems with the fossilised forest buried under the seabed.

"We've had a geologist on site and no issues have arisen."

Mr Kil said work on laying the cable had finished, although its cable-laying ship and dive team would return later this week to bury the cable below the seabed up to 100m offshore.

Although Porirua does not currently have the cable company's telephone and other services, Mr Kil said this may change.

"We didn't previously have a backbone through this area - the cable will give us that.

"Porirua is on our list of areas for possible expansion."

Mr Kil was unable to say when a decision would be made.

- PORIRUA NEWS