Kaiteriteri waterskiiers have new time limit

December 16th, 2011

Tasman District Council is trialling a new systems of priority times for water skiers at Kaiteriteri Beach this summer. This exception to the normal bylaw provisions is in force between December 16th and February 28th.

Under the new rules, for two hours either side of high tide the Water Skiing Area is reserved for priority use by water skiers. Outside of these times the reserved status is revoked and the normal rules apply.

Skiers and boats towing inflatable water toys may still share the area with other water users if it is safe to do so. Any beach starts and landings are at 5 knots or less.

Council says to address ongoing safety concerns for swimmers and water skiers near the lagoon outlet at Kaiteriteri, a boom was installed as a trial over the past two summers. Unfortunately, this has not been as effective as hoped, and the Environment and Planning Committee of Tasman District Council recommended that the Harbourmaster issue a Special Direction restricting priority use of the water ski area by water skiers to the two hours either side of high tide.

Priority times will be trialled over the coming summer. A full review of the Tasman District Council Navigation Safety Bylaw is planned for 2012. This and other options will be considered for long term management of the risks in this area as part of this review, which will include public consultation.

In the new schedule posted on TDC's website here, the main points fot water-use management this summer are as follows, relating to the map below:

the speed limit is uplifted for the purpose of water skiing within the marked area. This reserved area is marked for year-round use with transit posts;
all vessels are prohibited in the area shown as “swimming only”;
all power-driven vessels are prohibited in area marked “Powered vessels prohibited”;
Personal Water Craft are prohibited from operating within the water ski area in Kaiteriteri Bay.

Council says the grounds for this special direction are to allow for better management of risk than the Bylaw allows for during this period of predicted extraordinary levels of use of the area. The previous method of passive control using a boom has proved to be insufficiently effective at separating the incompatible activities of swimming and waterskiing during strong lagoon outflows and at low tides.

Further, allowance for priority use of the entire “water skiing area” throughout all daylight hours by waterskiers restricts vessel access to the beach at Little Kaiteriteri, and other uses of that area of water, during this period of high overall demand. This has resulted in the past in unlawful use of the area which cannot be effectively enforced with current resourcing, resulting at times in unacceptable navigation safety risks.

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