A contentious proposed bylaw which would have banned access to parts of the South Wairarapa coast is off the table in its current form.
Instead, South Wairarapa councillors would choose between adopting an amended bylaw, retaining status quo, or developing other solutions to combat coastal vandalism.
The council’s initial proposal, which attracted 3565 submissions - 84% against - was to temporarily restrict all access to a paper road in Cape Palliser for three years to allow the land to regenerate and heal.
The paper road, which gives public access to a stretch of Cape Palliser coastline, traverses both privately-owned Māori land and Crown land managed by the Department of Conservation (DOC).
It had historically been used by the public for access to remote coastal areas, including surf breaks and parts of Aorangi Forest Park but the area had suffered extensive environmental degradation due to the misuse of the road to access private land by four-wheel drives, quad bikes, and illegal campers.
The landowners, represented by Ngāti Hinewaka hapū, reported serious damage to native flora and fauna, erosion, and desecration of wāhi tapu (sacred sites), including ancestral burial grounds.
Analysis of the submissions showed there was significant support for pedestrian and bike access, support for vehicle restrictions, and limited support for horse access to be granted.
Councillors would meet on Wednesday, September 24 to deliberate on the submissions and agree on a path forward.
A report to the council’s Strategy Working Committee gave three options for the council to consider.
The first option was to amend the proposed bylaw to allow pedestrian, non-motorised wheeled devices, and quad bikes and side-by-side access by permit.
Permits would need to be applied for through the council to access the paper road.
“This restriction on vehicle access will allow the chief executive, landowners, stakeholders, and the community to work towards a solution to fence the paper road (including a survey to determine the paper road route) which balances the need for land restoration with the community’s desire for continued access,” the report said.
“By allowing pedestrian and non-motorised wheeled devices access, the bylaw preserves public rites of passage, which are protected under common law and statutory provisions.”
If this option was approved, it would be adopted at the full council meeting on October 8.
The second option was to retain status quo and continue monitoring.
The third option was to not proceed with the bylaw and instead engage with the hapū and local community to develop other solutions.
This option involved identifying where the paper road was by agreeing to survey the area, discussing with Heritage NZ the actions needed for the community to fence sites, and developing information boards at the entrance to the area that clearly identified the conditions under which access was permitted.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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