Selected Articles from Issue 22 (June/July 2001)
Barrier steeped in maritime history
Great Barrier Radio alive and well
Fishermen say, they should have a say
The life and times
of a legend
Community backs historic lighthouse
This is just a small selection of articles from the magazine. Order your back-copy from VIP Publications or subscribe for your own copy every other month
Barrier steeped
in maritime history
by Keith Ingram
Ferocious winds, heavy seas, bad weather and cancelled
ferries are not uncommon on Great Barrier Island, the largest island in the
Hauraki Gulf. Great Barrier, situated approximately 50 miles north-east of
Auckland, is the Hauraki Gulf's weather shield, offering protection against the
worst of the Pacific's seasonal fury. Although just over the horizon for many
Aucklanders, "the Barrier" is steeped in maritime history.
Since its discovery on November 23, 1769, by the English
explorer Captain James Cook, the island has seen many boom-and-bust eras, from
the early whaling days, to the mining of copper, silver and gold, which was
successfully mined in commercial quantities to create work for thousands of
people on the island.
Times boomed as huge kauri timber supported hundreds
more new immigrants and workers. The largest ship built by tonnage during this
period in New Zealand, the Sterlingshire, was built at Nagle Cove, Port
Abercrombie by John Gillies, and launched in November 1848. This three-masted
409 ton barque, with two decks and a square stern, was constructed of pohutukawa
and kauri.
The island has also seen its fair share of disasters.
One of the worst shipwrecks in this country's history came early in the life of
the island's European settlement. On October 29, 1894, at 0010 hours, the 1,786
ton steamer Wairarapa, Auckland-bound from Sydney, was ploughing through heavy
seas at full speed in thick fog when she struck one of the towering 200m cliffs
to the east of Miners Head on the island's northern tip. News of the tragedy did
not reach Auckland til 3 days after the accident. What might have been a rescue
effort amounted to a salvage operation.
Twenty of the Wairarapa's 65 crew, and 101 of the 186
passengers lost their lives in this maritime disaster, for which her skipper,
Captain John Macintosh, who had repeatedly ignored advice to reduce speed, was
found to be entirely to blame.
The bodies of those who perished drifted down both sides
of the island. Some were unidentifiable due to shark encounters. Many are buried
in the two main gravesites at Katherine Bay and Whangapoua.
Twenty-eight years later, the steamer Wiltshire was
driven onto the rocks and broke in two at Rosalie Bay after being caught in the
grip of a ferocious easterly storm. Miraculously, of the 103 crew, not one life
was lost.
One other notable vessel to come to grief on the island
was the pirate radio ship Tiri, a wooden scow. In the early days of private
radio the Tiri was driven onto the rocks at Whangaparapara in January 1968.
Since then, this island's rugged coastline and beaches have claimed a number of
small ships, with the sail training tall ship, the Spirit of New Zealand,
spending a spell ashore on the beach at Tryphena.
Life is much more sedate these days on Great Barrier.
With only one commercially viable farm remaining plus a number of lifestyle
blocks, agriculture is no longer a strength of the island's economy. As much of
the fishing quota held by locals has been sold to larger companies on the
mainland, only a few fishermen domiciled on the island still work the local
waters. This has contributed to change, and over the past decade the island has
turned to tourism and aquaculture as its main source of income. Aquaculture,
particularly mussel farming, developed very quickly on the island. Currently
there are approximately 18 hectares of mussel farms in Fitzroy, which includes
the three hectares at Red Cliffs, just outside Man of War Passage. There is a
further seven hectares of mussels at Katherine Bay.
Bruno Reusser operates the local mussel harvest and
service barge. He says the industry is stable and produces some of the best
export quality mussels in the north. However, when things get busy during the
peak of harvest or when breakdowns strike, he needs to call in support from the
mussel vessel Falcon operated by Greenshell NZ Ltd, from Coromandel.
The plankton-enriched waters surrounding Great Barrier
Island are well suited to mussel cultivation. Seeded mussels grow approximately
5mm per month, with each mussel line producing, on average, 25 tonnes of export
quality mussels.
But the island is looking to tourism for its future
development. At the time of our visit many locals were discussing what they saw
as a setback to increasing visitor numbers to the island. Fullers Auckland had
just announced that they were withdrawing from the regular weekly services to
the island and would, in future, only provide a tourist service during Labour
weekend, the six weeks over Christmas, and Easter weekend.
The General Manager of Fullers Auckland, Chris Bradley,
said the company was reluctant to make this final decision. "It is a costly
business to run fast ferries to the island all year round, when the service only
showed a profit for a few weeks of the year and then runs at a significant loss
for the remainder."
Which in itself is a tough call, as it would appear that
the island is well serviced, and does not have the population base to sustain a
year-round fast ferry service. It is a fair guess that Fullers would have had to
carry the Barrier's loss on its other services, and it is unfair on these
commuters for them to have to pay for cross-subsidisation.
However, Bradley said, "We would not want to see
any group disadvantaged, and we are more than happy to talk to any lodge or
tourist destination about the potential of running special services where they
can guarantee a minimum number of passengers."
In the meantime, several small airlines fly to the
Barrier, providing up to nine flights daily to and from the island. A couple of
smaller shipping companies, Great Barrier Express and Stella Shipping, provide a
freight service and limited passenger service to the island.
However, the mainstay of getting passengers, vehicles and freight
in and out of the island now rests with one of Auckland's oldest shipping
companies, Subritzky Shipping Line. Subritzky Line operates the MV Sealink for
vehicular passenger and freight service to the Barrier five days a week,
increasing to a daily run over the summer holiday period. The journey from
Wynyard Wharf to Tryphena takes around three hours and forty minutes, and has
only ever had to cancelled, for passenger and vehicular safety, in the most
extreme conditions. Subritzky Line Operations Director, Brett Subritzky, said
his company was committed to ensuring that the residents of Great Barrier could
confidently plan local business growth knowing that they had a reliable and
regular sea service from the mainland. Subritzky Line have committed to spend
nearly $200.000 upgrading the MV Sealink this winter to improve passenger
comfort and cargo efficiencies.
Recent visit
On our recent visit to check out the commercial activity on the island we
decided to remain land-based, taking our 4x4 across on the Sealink. Once the
small freight, loaded into trolleys, was secure, and the walk-on passengers had
boarded, the final backing on of trucks and cars went without a hitch and
Sealink departed on time.
With an easterly blow threatening, we arrived at Great
Barrier on schedule, and within twenty minutes the Sealink had unloaded,
reloaded and was slipping her lines, bound for Auckland. It was obvious to see
that the crew had the turnaround off pat.
After a leisurely drive up through the island, with a
break for lunch overlooking the magnificent east coast beaches, we finally
arrived at our destination in Karaka Bay, where we spent the next few days based
at the Orama Christian Community Camp. While the Christian Community is
interdenominational, with eight trustees running the trust, Orama is not just a
religious community. The trustees have broadened their horizons, and Orama is
open to the public, from backpackers' quarters to fully self-contained units or
cottages. There is even a house in its own private bay which may be rented. The
community is run on a similar style to a marae, with the main community areas of
dining room and lounge, no smoking or alcohol to be respected. The camp covers
some 230 hectares, with 30 hectares in grass, and caters for up to 150 guests.
Meal times are communal, with a fixed menu of good,
wholesome tucker at very reasonable prices. The Christian community is
self-sufficient in much of what it supplies to the camp from milk, meat, some
vegetables and fruit grown on the site.
Because we were coming and going a lot, we stayed in one
of the beachfront units, where we were self-sufficient for our breakfast and
lunches. It was only in the evenings that we were joined for dinner by members
of the community and some 30 senior trampers from Tauranga. Alcohol is permitted
in your units, but smokers are requested to smoke outside throughout the camp.
The accommodation coordinator, Louise Stevens, says they
are now catering for more and more family groups, trampers and mountain bikers,
and for guests who want explore the bays they have kayaks and canoes for hire.
The camp is well suited to run both small and large conferences at an affordable
price.
But with Fullers pulling out they are now having to look
for who else might be able to provide a service to the top end of the island,
says Louise. "Along with Orama, there are a number of other fine lodges
like Fitzroy House, and The Jetty up this end. Between us we can cater from
backpackers to silver service. With the loss of a fast service to the top end
makes it harder to attract visitors outside of the holiday breaks when we need
them."
In saying this, they are hoping that they will still be
able to attract guests to visit because of the unique ambiance of the
surroundings, and they are keen to talk with any business which could operate
viably with smaller numbers.
As we ventured south, we called in to see that old
identity at Whangaparapara, George Mason, and his new assistant, Alison Cox.
Once at Tryphena we spent a couple of nights with our
friends Mike and Marge at Tipi and Bob's, which overlooks Tryphena Harbour and
has accommodation for 30 couples or 24 as singles. They can provide conference
facilities and have an excellent bar and restaurant.
Sunset Motels is also handily situated in Tryphena close
to all amenities.
After six days it was time to meet the ferry for the
journey home to Auckland.
Great Barrier Island is unique and a fine place to
visit, with an abundance of opportunities begging.
Great Barrier
Radio alive and well
by Keith Ingram
Over the last couple of years or so there has been some
concern as to whether Channel one, Great Barrier Radio, would continue with the
fine service which it has provided to Auckland's commercial fleet and
recreational boaties who frequent the Barrier.
This privately funded, subscriber-based marine radio
service operating on channel one from Whangaparapara on the Barrier was
established by the island's renowned local identity, George Mason.
George needs little introduction to anyone in the marine
industry who needs to know. He is after all recognised as an institution which
developed from his early days as the island's policeman. Seafarers will remember
many a night when trying to seek shelter when George would turn out, get into
his vehicle, drive to a position which would give a safe lead, and shine his
headlights to guide a storm-tossed vessel through safe waters to shelter.
Institution or not, humans are mere mortals, and age has
a habit of taking its toll. Unfortunately George is no different, and in recent
years his health has started to deteriorate, which in turn has caused concern to
all seafarers who have relied upon or use the services of Great Barrier Radio.
On a recent visit to Great Barrier I took time out to
visit this old and respected friend, only to be greeted with "Not so much of the old,"
which gave me heart that George, although a bit slower, is still in fine fettle,
and so we shared the latest scuttlebutt over a cuppa.
"The control room is as it should be," he
said, "but it is in the operations room that you need to talk." And so
it was with much pleasure that I met Allison Cox for first time. At last there
was a face to the cheery voice we had experienced on the airways for the past 12
months. Ali had taken on the task as radio operator of Great Barrier Radio.
What would make a young lady of the world want to seek
isolation at Great Barrier, I pondered. As though reading my mind, she said she
couldn't really explain exactly why she chose to move to Great Barrier Island.
But she liked the style of channel one. She enjoys the lifestyle which Great
Barrier has to offer, and she enjoys maintaining contact with the sea.
On delving further, we find that she is also no newcomer
in the sea-going department, having spent five years with the Spirit of
Adventure Trust sail-training vessels, particularly the Spirit of New Zealand.
She has also amassed a fair amount of blue-water sailing, and has sailed around
the Horn to the Falkland Islands in a small yacht. With a love of the sea and
the need to take time out to complete her degree by correspondence, she saw
Great Barrier Radio as a challenge, where she could maintain an active contact
with the sea, continue her studies and enjoy a lifestyle while maintaining an
important link for seafarers' safety and communication. From her own first-hand
experience she has an excellent knowledge of the Hauraki Gulf, its islands,
bays, nooks and crannies.
In talking with her, it is easy to understand why this
young lady has already endeared herself to mariners from all walks of life by
the many compliments she receives. When we ask what the key is to this success,
Ali replies "Probably because I am a female, I'm friendly, and I can relate
to the problems or difficulties, the good times, the humour, and the frustrating
situations those at sea are experiencing.
"Men tend to treat me differently" she says,
"probably because I am a female. There is no aggression or macho bravado
which can sometimes prevail when men are explaining some problem or other with
another male radio operator."
From a seafarer's position it has to be recognised that
Ali has a very clear voice on the radio, she is unflustered and professional in
the manner in which she goes about her duties on air. For the old hands who
still want to have a chat with George, he is always available in the control
room and maintains a listening brief.
Great Barrier Radio provides an excellent VHF coverage
on channel one throughout the inner and outer Hauraki Gulf, across the
Mokohinaus and up the north-east coast and south into the Bay, the Coromandel
coast and the Mercury Islands.
At NZ Professional Skipper magazine we encourage all
commercial operators operating this area, and the wider boating public who tend
to use channel one, thinking it is a government-funded service, to consider
joining Great Barrier Radio and support the fine service they provide. The
annual membership fee is $50, and payment may be made out to Great Barrier
Radio, RD 1, Claris, Great Barrier Island.
As they have just upgraded their radio equipment at some significant cost, corporate donations and new members are welcome.
Fishermen say,
they should have a say
by Keith Ingram
"What are your values and principles of what you
want from your oceans?" the Minister of Fisheries, Pete Hodgson, speaking
on the Oceans Policy, asked delegates at the 43rd annual conference of the New
Zealand Federation of Professional Fishermen.
He asked us to picture the needs of multi-users,
fishing, minerals, shipping, wave action, conservation, tourism, charter boats
and recreational users. These all need to be considered as we move forward to
develop our Oceans Policy, he said.
Hodgson's challenge followed the welcoming introduction
by the President of the Federation, Peter Jones, and the official opening by the
Mayor of Tauranga, Noel Pope.
Recreational fishing rights are being squeezed by the
existing rights of Maori customary and commercial harvest. However, he
congratulated the federation, particularly the fishermen present, for inviting
recreational fishers to participate in the conference.
He then moved onto fisheries plans and recognised areas
where plans could be developed reasonably quickly and put in place to benefit
those localised fisheries.
The Fishing Industry Board Act was being repealed.
"It was hard for any government to justify such outdated legislation,"
he said. He noted that it would be desirable to have it wrapped up by October,
but it would be definitely be put away by October 1, 2002. He recognised that
the seafood industry was now pursuing the commodity levy process and they needed
to sell this to their industry. This raised questions from the floor about who
says and who pays.
Fishermen are becoming increasingly concerned that quota
owners get their say, but the fishermen have to pay at point of landing but
don't get any say. It was also stated that federation members and share
fishermen don't get any say in the process of SEAFIC. This was controlled by the
quota owners. Under the commodity levy, only the quota holders pay or have any
say, and yet they pass these costs onto the fishermen.
Alistair Macfarlane rose in defence of SEAFIC, stating
SEAFIC is owned by the stakeholder companies. "The Fishing Industry
Association and the federation have both relinquished their rights to ownership
at the time of change," he said. "Not all stakeholder companies are
controlled by the corporates. All groups are still accommodated in Fishing
Industry House." Macfarlane also asked "Why, after four years, has
this now become a problem, and why has it not been brought forward before
now?"
This debate was to set the trend as the fishermen
debated the many issues facing their industry throughout the rest of the
conference. During the ministry session, problems with fish returns and Ministry
of Fisheries levy payments were identified as core problems and discussed.
On October 1 by-catch tradeoffs cease, with one
exception, bluenose, which will remain in force for a further two years. The
issues of new species going into the quota management system were discussed.
Fishermen were not happy about the method being used to establish catch history
for new species, and how to establish catch history for migratory species
created much debate.
Tuna quota
The problems associated with the small international quota allocated to New
Zealand for southern bluefin tuna was discussed. There was strong support that
this quota should be reserved solely for New Zealand fishermen, and that
companies who had chartered foreign vessels in the past to fish southern bluefin
tuna should now be made by the government to use New Zealand fishermen and New
Zealand vessels, in keeping with Labour's commitment towards "New
Zealandisation."
This led into the tuna session, where the chairman, SEE
KEITH FOR HIS NAME, opened by saying that tuna was a significant industry which
would undergo many changes in the next few years. Many of these changes would be
influenced by international requirements, he said.
The tuna industry council consisted of the three sector
groups in this fisheries: Pelagic and Tuna, Tuna New Zealand and Tuna Trollers.
They have a lot of work to do to ensure that their members have a vibrant and
reliable fishery in the future. Tuna Trollers have introduced a catch-landing
levy which has run since January 1. This in itself is establishing funds towards
managing this fishery.
During the conference the new Tuna Forum of
International Tuna Commissions was sitting in Christchurch. This forum is made
up of nine countries in the western Pacific, with seven countries south of 20
degrees and two countries from north of that line.
The stock is highly migratory, and a number of countries
inter-act with the tuna which pass through their waters. Te Ohu Kai Moana are
not happy to sign the tuna convention and, as was expected, Japan is not happy
either.
The issue of southern bluefin tuna was once again
raised, with questions of how does New Zealand get an increase in its annual
quota. The conference was told any increase in the New Zealand quota would only
happen when the harvest rate increased in the whole fishery. The New Zealand
catch of southern bluefin tuna is pegged at 420 tonnes, which is a very small
portion of the 11,750 tonne international quota total.
However, it was recognised that Taiwan and Korea are
fishing in excess of this, and continue to do so. The question of why Japan also
has a further 1500 tonnes experimental tuna quota was questioned as a misnomer,
and was seen as Japan's excuse for fishing in excess of their allocated
international quota.
We were told that Japan has constantly overfished
southern bluefin tuna on the high seas, and the conference asked the ministry
why it was continuing to allow Japanese charter vessels to catch southern
bluefin tuna in New Zealand's 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone.
The issue of broadbill by-catch was also raised. The
ministry noted that the level of tonnage now being landed could no longer be
regarded as a by-catch, as many fishermen were fishing to establish a catch
history in this species in preparation for the time when national or
international quotas might be set. The issue surrounding broadbill would need to
be debated carefully, as it was becoming of particular concern to some
recreational fishing sectors.
This led to the subject of the New Zealand Bill Fish moratorium,
where it was pointed out to Ministry of Fisheries officials present that
international arrangements were currently being developed to establish an
international quota on this migratory species, especially striped marlin. With
the experiences of southern bluefin tuna allocations which have disadvantaged
New Zealand fishermen, the fishermen want the ability to establish a catch
history for marlin. Otherwise, once again they said, New Zealand would be
disadvantaged when international quotas were given to countries. Mark Edwards of
MoF pointed out that marlin was an important recreational and tourist species to
New Zealand, and we had very good catch and landing records from that sector.
Recreational fishers held equally strong views about the subject of marlin.
Foreign charters
Discussion then moved to the use of foreign charter vessels instead of using New
Zealand boats. Once again the subject of New Zealandisation came up, with the
meeting clearly telling the ministry that they wanted a change in policy, that
only New Zealanders could catch the 420 tonnes of southern bluefin tuna
allocated to New Zealand, and that the government not allow foreign fishing
vessels to fish it.
The conference strongly recommended that the government
remove joint venture vessels from the New Zealand tuna fishery.
Delegates from Tuna New Zealand came out very clearly in
their statement that they did not want tuna moved into the quota management
regime. They said they believed tuna should remain a competitive species. They
were particularly pissed off with SEAFIC for supporting that southern bluefin
tuna go into the quota management system.
Once again general dissatisfaction over the performance
of SEAFIC and its management was raised. Pete Dawson refuted that SEAFIC had any
hidden agendas. "SEAFIC's voting power is based on the base levy
income," he said.
"SEAFIC is a generic company to look after the
interests of the member companies at a generic level. It has eight directors
with a rotational retirement system.
"All tuna levies contributed about six percent to
SEAFIC funding, which is about the fourth or fifth largest species contributor,
but the tuna fishermen cannot get together and agree as a combined stakeholder.
Herein lies the challenge," he said. "If they could reach an agreement
they would be a strong representative stakeholder and could get a position on
the board."
In response, Richard Cade pointed out that there were 20
stakeholder groups, hoki hold 40 percent, cray 10 percent, orange roughy 10
percent, and if tuna were to have a chance of getting a director on SEAFIC it
would need to secure 25.1 percent of the agreed vote by a deal."
The question was then asked: Is SEAFIC a trade
organisation or is it a company. If it is a company, by this structure it cannot
get stakeholder group's own representation without a lot of deal making.
"Forget the board," said Dawson. "The
powerhouse is the policy council, which has no restrictions to participate
except that they must have an interest in fisheries."
In response to the question regarding southern bluefin
tuna coming into the quota management system, the conference was told all
commercial species must come into the QMS under the Treaty Settlement. Southern
bluefin tuna is no different, which would mean 84 tonnes being allocated to
Maori. This only reinforced the argument from the tuna fishermen that as tuna
were migratory, southern bluefin tuna quota should be caught competitively by
the fishermen, and the rewards come to the fishermen. Otherwise, under a quota
system, fishermen would be further penalised in their returns by having to pay
leases for quota.
Marlin was now of significant concern. Fishermen were
releasing marlin alive and dead, and could not establish a catch history while
other countries were establishing a catch history, the conference was told.
When international quotas were set, New Zealand
fishermen would be disadvantaged, and would be left with no option but to claim
the value of every marlin released alive or dead from the government.
Internationally marlin is a commercial species, and New
Zealand fishermen are being denied the rights to land, and cannot establish a
catch history.
What about the recreational landings? The industry would
be buying a fight with recreational fishers, the conference was told. No, the
government would be buying the fight, not the fishermen. The fishermen believed
they had a right, an international right.
Brief summary
A brief summary of the Maritime Safety Authority session follows.
Electronic charts. Electronic charts are now recognised
with a paper backup. The MSA has adopted the American system of electronic
charts.
Iain Kerr identified that the problems of pilotage,
whether it be 100 tons gross or net, was still about. The Harbours Act says 100
tons gross. The Harbours Act is due to expire in two year's time.
The recent Mathers case was raised, pointing the
problems of section 65 of the act and its problems associated with the reverse
onus of responsibility when coupled with section 6 of the act.
Tony Legge said nothing had changed. It had always been a
requirement. When asked why the MSA didn't prosecute the surviving member or
whether he was given immunity from prosecution, Tony Legge said no, and that the
Maritime Transport Act was deficient in as much as there was no standard for the
level of sobriety or drug use. It was only illegal if you had had a conviction
prior to 1996. The drug provision was not brought forward from the old Shipping
and Seaman Act into the Maritime Transport Act, and he could not recall why this
was not done. The MSA got a clear message from the fishermen regarding drugs,
and that it was their responsibility to ensure we had the legislative power to
keep drugs off our vessels. Legge replied that it was up to the industry to put
forward its ideas to the MSA.
Workshop. There was a meeting with recreational sector
representatives re the Soundings document, and the inter-relationship between
commercial and recreational fishers during the development of fisheries plans.
Richard Cade opened the recreational session with some
slides. He noted that in management issues in the coastal fisheries, commercial
and non-commercial representation were likely to agree quite quickly on about 80
percent, 10-15 percent might take a bit longer, and the last 5 percent might
take quite a long time. But we would have done 95 percent to resolve the issues
of shared management of the shared coastal fisheries.
Steve Penn, the President for the New Zealand
Recreational Fishing Council, followed, and noted that it was time we got
together. Such a meeting would not have been contemplated a decade ago. The
public right to take a bag limit of food from the sea belonged as much to the
commercial fishers present as anybody else.
Soundings. Despite the criticism, Soundings had got
members of the public off their chuffs and producing input. The growth of Option
4 had shown strong public concern over some of the issues.
From the overall analysis of public submissions, the
public had given a fair bit of direction, and the top five points from the
analysis would each be addressed by individual members of the executive.
Keith Ingram opened on the priority. Contrary to what
some commercial representatives might believe, there was little public
consultation on the introduction of the quota management system before its
introduction in 1986.
Maori have since had their rights qualified in the
Treaty of Waitangi Fisheries Settlement Act. In 1989 the Labour government
released the only policy for marine recreational fishers to date. This council's
interpretation of priority started and finished with the promise given in that
document: "Where a species of fish is not sufficiently abundant to support
both commercial and non-commercial fishing, preference will be given to
non-commercial fishing".
Herein lies the challenge to the industry. It was in the
commercial industry's interests to ensure that commercial fishers worked to
reduce waste, theft and the incidental mortality in some fisheries, because
those fish were lost from the total allowable catch.
Sure the public's needs would grow, but if the fishers
worked towards rebuilding in all-important shared species, this rebuild should
cater for the future public's needs, while allowing some growth in commercial
harvest.
The commercial share was well defined, and the public
was entitled to free access to a reasonable share. This too should be well
defined. We all need to talk through the issues and try to reach agreement.
Peter Stevens challenged Keith Ingram on the issue of
inadequate consultation on the introduction of the QMS. "There was the Blue
Book, television programmes, public meetings, it went on for months, many
amateurs were at the Select Committee hearings, the media was at all meetings.
Most people were just glad to see that there would be a reduction in the
expansion of the effort in the coastal fisheries." However, Peter's views
were not shared by the other recreational or ministry representatives present.
Peter Ellery picked up the second point on the ability
to exclude commercial fishing from areas of high public use. An example was the
Coromandel Scallop Fishery. When a change in the minimum legal size for
commercial, from 100mm down to 90mm was proposed as a method of reducing the
incidental mortality from commercial dredging. The recreational sector agreed,
on condition that areas proportional to the public share of the harvest in that
fishery (approximately 15 percent of the fishery then) was declared commercial
exclusion zones to protect public access to the fishery.
Bob Burstall said it was essential to devise plans to
ensure that fish conserved from non-commercial objectives were not lost.
Commercial representation had been through devolution and was continuing to
evolve that devolution. "We are just starting out on that trail and have a
fair way to go. We will be studying the three books put out by the ministry on
fisheries plans and developing our policy over time. A lot will depend on how
our right is defined, and therefore how we will achieve an equitable place in
fisheries plans for our objectives.
"Recreational fishers helped reduce the fishing
effort impact on snapper by reducing our bag from 30 to 15 to nine, by raising
the size limit from 25 to 27cm, and by reducing the number of hooks on a
longline to a maximum of 25. We want to ensure that savings that we achieve in
our harvest and the associated benefits to the biomass of fisheries are
conserved for our objectives and not lost to other sectors.
Max Hetherington wrapped up with the fifth point, the
need for better inter-sector communication. "What's happened here today is
a good example of what we can continue to build on. Fisheries plans are very
much the way of the future. The rock lobster fishery is an example that it can
work," he said. "The whole NZRFC executive is here, we've
communicated, and any type of joint working group is possible if we want it to
be."
Bob Burstall stepped up to offer a teaser to the room.
Deemed funds paid to the ministry should remain in the management of the
fisheries rather than disappearing into the Consolidated Fund, he said. This
money could amount to $8 million to $14 million per annum. Some of this could
subsidise managing the public share in the coastal fisheries, while the rest
should be used to boost research and compliance funding in those fisheries in
which it is paid.
The commercial representatives noted that they had tried
to retrieve deemed payments from the Treasury without success. But with a
combined sector approach and the support of the public, it might be able to be
achievable.
There was general agreement that we should maintain the
dialogue between the sectors, as this was a good start.
The life and times of
a legend
by Baden Pascoe
Baden Pascoe is the son of the 18 footer designer,
builder and skipper Howard Pascoe. Baden grew up with traditional wooden work
boats and holds a strong interest in them. He has collected stories and
photographs on this subject for many years, and he is keen to encourage the
preservation and restoration of any wooden vessel.
Baden and his brother, Mitch, own and operate a 35ft
Grands Banks dory called John Dory.
If you have any associated information on wooden workboats, past
or present, please contact Baden on (09) 575 8468 or e-mail baden@voyager.co.nz
It is hard to imagine how much work the Lady Eva has
done during the last 88 years. Stories are told and scars are visible of her
many incidents. Coastal skippers and seamen who have served on her or know her
speak of her with respect and passion. She has certainly played her part in
developing the New Zealand economy.
My relationship with the Lady Eva goes back only 35
years. I remember her when she regularly visited Whitianga with her barge, the
Waimarie. At that stage of her life she was delivering bulk fertiliser to many
small farming communities from the Far North to the Bay of Plenty. She was one
of the Parry Bros fleet. To my knowledge they owned and operated the Hipi, the
Glynbird, the Lady Eva and the Wainui. I recall going aboard her with my father
and having morning "smoko" with her skipper, Don Macbeth, and the
crew. I can vividly recall the smell of the hot 8L3s after their ten or so hours
steaming from Auckland to Whitianga. They were music to the ears, and the gentle
sound gave one the impression that the 400 to 500 ton pull was just a cake walk.
The Lady Eva was designed and built by Bailey & Low
of Auckland, and launched in December 1913. She was officially registered on
December 13 as a 'trading launch' for Captain W R 'Skipper' Patterson of
Whangarei. Her length was 62ft, her beam was 15ft 2in, and she was designed with
a shallow draft to allow her access over the bars and into the rivers of
Northland. Her power was a four-cylinder, 120hp, English-built Beardmore
semi-diesel.
'Skipper' Patterson, as he was known, was the brother of
the New Zealand importer for Big Tree Motor Spirit. He was the northern agent
and distributor for this new fuel. Skipper would use the Lady Eva to deliver Big
Tree Spirit and other light cargo to the more remote ports. Passengers were also
a source of revenue, as many of the Northern Line's steamers could not service
these small ports.
Her papers show she was licensed for 144 passengers, and
photographs show her heading down to the Whangarei Heads on picnic cruises. At
this stage she also acted as a coastal tug, and Skipper made her available to
rescue and salvage many foundered and crippled scows.
It was not long before the Lady Eva earned a reputation
as a versatile and very capable coastal tug, and tows were not hard to come by.
In 1917, while under Skipper Patterson’s ownership,
the Lady Eva sailed out of Whangarei in an unsuccessful search for Count von
Lucknow, known as 'the German raider', who had escaped from Motuihe Island in
the Hauraki Gulf. Von Lucknow first called into Red Mercury Island, and was
finally apprehended at the Kermadec Islands by the Royal New Zealand Navy.
Between 1917 and 1920, Skipper sold the Lady Eva to his
close friend, Bill Reynolds, who owned Whangarei Engineering. It is understood
Jack Carey looked after the company’s marine-based interests, and skippered
her up until 1930, when J J Craig purchased her. Jack may have helped Craigs out
from time to time during the 1930s.
Jack Carey was well known for his ability and seamanship
in towing launches and tugs. Many say he was an authority on the subject, and he
was well sought after by young men wanting to follow in his footsteps. Barney
and Laurie Soljak were two of his boys who served with him for many years. It
was not hard to gain command of larger Auckland Harbour tugs once you had been
to sea with Jack. Both Laurie and Barney did this, and they, too, were respected
men on the Auckland waterfront.
During the 1930s the Kauri Timber Company closed down
many of their smaller coastal mills, and logs were rafted back to Freeman’s
Bay in Auckland. The Lady Eva towed thousands of tonnes of logs from Tairua,
Whitianga, Whangapoa, Great Barrier Island and as far south as Gisborne. Some of
the tows from Tairua would last four or five days, as towing speeds were only 2
or 3 knots.
The rafts were often anchored when the tide was too
strong or the weather was foul, and the Lady Eva and her crew sheltered in bays
along the way. Each night the youngest member of the crew would walk across the
raft to light the kerosene lamp to mark the tow, then make the same trip again
at daylight to retrieve the lamp.
Captain Don Ross of Whitianga can remember those days,
as he lived with his parents at Opito Bay. His father would often row out at
night to deliver fresh farm food and play cards with Jack and the boys. I
suppose they were keen for new company!
In the mid-1930s Barney was almost killed as he was
'barring over' the Beardmore to start it. He was not quick enough to remove the
bar as the massive machine fired, and he was thrown against the hull or
cabin-side. He was taken to Auckland Hospital, where he remained unconscious for
two days.
As soon as he came to he made his own way back to the
Lady Eva. He was not interested in 'compo' or the like, he just wanted to get
back to the Lady Eva and Jack.
The pay rate for crew was one pound per week if they
remained in the Hauraki Gulf, or two pounds for the complete trip if they
steamed out of the gulf.
In 1930 she was sold to J J Craig, Auckland’s leading
building material aggregate supplier. Craigs engaged her to tow their de-masted
scows, at about the time the scow era was coming to an end. In 1936 the
Beardmore was replaced by a six-cylinder 132hp Bergus (now Kelvin). I have heard
this was a smooth and reliable engine, and at that stage would have been one of
the most powerful internal combustion marine engines on the New Zealand coast.
The Lady Eva had another engine change in 1942, and the
Bergus was replaced with a smaller-powered six-cylinder, 132hp Crosley. The less
powerful engine may have been due to the difficulty of obtaining spares or an
engine of the same or more power during the Second World War.
On August 3, 1950, the Lady Eva had an engine failure
due to a fuel problem while towing the barge Selwyn (formerly Dandy 1901) over
the Mangawhai bar. In those days the barges were converted scows which required
regular pumping, and the Marine Department required manned barges. I understand
the barge man could not swim, and the tow had to be let go to avoid losing the
Lady Eva. The barge was lost in the breakers and the barge man lost his life in
the surf.
In the early 1950s she was on the market again, and
Claude Miller purchased her. The Crosley was replaced by a 150hp 8L3 Gardner.
These engines where marketed very aggressively by John Chambers & Sons, and
were supported by a strong after-sales service department led by a renowned diesel specialist,
'Shorty' Sefton.
The Lady Eva had a major refit while under Claude’s
ownership, and I believe much of her towing gear and the steel after-deckhouse
that she now has was fitted at this time. Mason Engineering did all the steel
work. Many steel strengthening knees and frames were fitted to assist her
internal timbers. The stern tube was plugged and the 8L3 moved to the port side.
Necessary timberwork was carried out for her to receive twin stern tubes.
A new, paired 8L3 was ordered and fitted. Twin rudders
were mounted behind the 42in x 37in three-blade propellers. On she went again
for another 40-odd years, going about her job.
Parry Bros took her over in the 1960s. Their core
business was shipping bulk fertiliser, building and roading aggregate. Once
again she met all their needs for many years. I do not know when Parry’s sold
her.
One of the last long jobs she did was towing the former
Greenpeace vessel Rainbow Warrior to her final resting place off Matauri Bay in
Northland. She has had several owners since her Parry Bros days.
In 1992 Bob and Bronwyn Alexander fell in love with the
Lady Eva and purchased her from Pony Moore of Moore Marine. They have carried
out the necessary work to maintain her present state, and intend to restore her
to serviceable condition.
In March she set sail again bound northwards and around
the North Cape to her new port in Helensville. Once again she turned heads as
she steamed down the Waitemata Harbour and headed north with a bone in her
teeth.
She has a compassionate look about her. Her hawse pipes
look like eyes scanning ahead and abeam for the next tow or looking to help some
vessel in need of a tow.
I am sure the Lady Eva will steam on for many years and
influence many more lives.
Community backs
historic lighthouse
Pic Picot
The thick, luminous beam from Castlepoint Lighthouse,
with its group flash three light shining every 30 seconds, has been a familiar
sight off the Wairarapa Coast since it came into service on January 12, 1913.
Not only a safety aid to sailors, it is also a landmark
that unites the local community, which brought strong pressure on the Maritime
Safety Authority to abandon its proposal to downgrade the lighthouse candle
power.
In a statement dated March 30, the Director of the MSA, Russell Kilvington, said there was no question of the lighthouse being removed. But the authority was looking at how to modernise the light’s technology and reduces the operating costs it imposes on maritime users. The reduced range would enable the light to be solarised and avoid an expensive upgrade of the existing power cable, standby diesel generator and associated equipment.
"Initial indications from users are that a
reduction of 16 nautical miles in the range of the light is not
acceptable," said Kilvington. "While I can't make the decision here
and now, we won't make any change without coming back to you and discussing
it."
The MSA had earlier said that upgrading and maintaining
the power supply and old equipment for the present light range was not
justified. The current light costs $10,000 per year to operate, and maintenance
costs are a problem. The proposed replacement would cost about $19,000 to
install but just $1000 a year to maintain.
"We're all used to the big, fat luminous
beam," Howard Walker, the MSA's divisional manager safety services, told a
meeting of local residents on April 15. "But a solar-powered 19 nautical
mile sharp focus light is as good. Its penetration of thick mist would be as
good, and it would use 50 watt light bulbs instead of the expensive and
difficult-to-obtain 1000 watt bulbs used now."
The Masterton District Council would pay up to $10,000
toward renewing and burying the cable to the light, a local councillor, Garry
Daniell, told the meeting.
The 22.5m lighthouse sits above the beach on a rugged
clump of rock that can be cut off from the beach settlements during extremely
high tides or bad weather, so the light itself has an elevation of 52m.
When it entered service, the Castlepoint Lighthouse was
the third-tallest lighthouse in New Zealand. In the 1940s the original mercury
light was replaced with a roller-type turntable, and in 1954 it was converted
from oil illumination to electricity. The light originally took three keepers to
attend it, then two, and it was fully automated in 1988. A final decision on the
lights future has yet to be made, with MSA officials when asked, preferring to
say "No comment"!
We will keep you informed on progress as information come to hand.
RNZAF Orions scan the
oceans
by Mark Barratt-Boyes
Amid the regular bustle of passengers and freight which
makes Dunedin Airport hum on a hot morning on January 24, it's easy to miss the
crew from the Royal New Zealand Air Force tramping across the concourse to the
squat, sombre presence of their Lockheed Orion.
Once pre-flight checks are completed, the four
turboprops of the Orion P-3K long-range maritime patrol aircraft are brought up
to fast idle. The plane taxis to the head of the runway, and then roars off into
the dry, eggshell blue Otago sky to the tempestuous Southern Ocean in search of
illegal Antarctic toothfish fishing.
On board are the pilot, co-pilot and two flight
engineers, who comprise the flight crew, plus
- a tactical coordinator, or TACCO, who is responsible
for employing the appropriate tactics and procedures to effectively complete the
assigned mission (either the pilot or the TACCO is designated to be the flight
captain)
- a navigator
- an air electronics officer and three air electronics
operators, who operate the radar, electronic surveillance and other sensors and
recorders, and an
- an air ordnanceman, who loads
and unloads stores and the retro marine marker system through the sonobuoy
launch chutes, and takes any hand-held photography.
As the Orion crew flies down below about 65 degrees
south, deep into the Southern Ocean, they begin their patrol, flying at
approximately 2800m above the water, watching their instruments and scanning the
ocean for 110km on either side of the planned flight path for any illegal,
unreported and unregulated fishing for toothfish, as they have done for four
years.
They also monitor the three New Zealand, one Uruguayan
and two South African vessels which this year were given approval to conduct
limited "exploratory fishing" under the convention for the
Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.
As the crew detects a contact on the radar, the aircraft
descends to within 61m of sea-level and passes 366m abeam of the vessel, for a
close and detailed check. The air ordnanceman takes photographs and video
footage of the vessel's progress, while other crew members record the vessel's
details. Then, after checking that no other contacts are close by, as only one
vessel may be in an area of 0.5 degrees latitude by 1 degree of longitude at any
one time, the crew returns to patrol altitude.
The 10.5 hour flight reveals good news. They located a
New Zealand vessel with a permit, and also a tourist ship in the region. The two
other New Zealand vessels with permits were operating well south in the Ross
Sea, but the flight did not go to their positions. There was no sign of illegal
fishing.
If a vessel had been suspected of infringing fisheries
regulations, the crew has plenty of equipment for obtaining evidence, including
infra-red detectors and cameras, a magnetic anomaly detector to locate submerged
contacts, systems to pick up and analyse long-range radar signals, and acoustic
processors to detect and classify submarines and distant surface vessels.
If required, the flight captain can "arrest"
the vessel's captain and order it to proceed to an appropriate port.
So, why all the trouble to protect a fish that most New
Zealanders have probably never even heard of, let alone tasted?
"If New Zealand didn't undertake surveillance in
the Ross Sea region, Antarctic waters immediately to our south off the Ross
Dependency would likely suffer the same fate as other places fished to virtual
commercial extinction," says the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon Jim
Sutton. He was referring to the Southern Ocean Patagonian toothfish, which has
been illegally fished to the point where its survival as a commercially viable
species is in doubt.
We know little about the Patagonian toothfish except
that it grows slowly to more than 2m in length, it can live for 50 years, and it
doesn't breed until it's at least 10 years old. We know even less about its
cousin, the Antarctic toothfish.
"Japanese whaling activities are also taking place
this season in the Ross Sea, and it's very appropriate to monitor this
activity," Sutton says.
The Orion is one of six which make up the New Zealand
Defence Force's Maritime Patrol Force, or MPF. It is the sole aircraft operated
by No. 5 Squadron. The P3-K Orion is based on P-3B airframes purchased in 1966.
Boeing partly modified them in 1982 in Project Rigel, and redesignated the
aircraft the P-3K (for Kiwi) Orion.
Early 2001 saw the completion of Project Kestrel, a New
Zealand initiative to replace the wings and engine nacelles at a cost of $100
million. As a result the aircraft are now airworthy for another 20 to 25 years.
The 1950s-era autopilots, considered to be obsolete and unreliable, are being
replaced with a modern digital system from BAE Systems at a cost of $9.56
million.
The Orion is ideal for long-range surveillance, as it
has a range of over 6000 km and can remain on station for up to eight hours.
Throughout the mission it can cruise at 630kph, but as the aircraft deviates
from the planned "straight flight path" a "speed of advance"
of approximately 425kph is actually flown. During their eight or so hours in the
air, its crew will patrol over 750,000sq km of ocean.
But the Maritime Patrol Force does much more than
monitor toothfish, as we regularly see on our televisions. And their crews have
some ocean to cover. Our maritime area of interest extends from Antarctica to
north of the equator, and from the mid-Tasman Sea to east of the Cook Islands.
It’s one of the largest search-and-rescue areas and one of the largest
Exclusive Economic Zones in the world. Our ocean approaches require regular
monitoring and surveillance to demonstrate the government's commitment to
protecting our resources. Further afield, our economic prosperity relies on the
security and stability of regional trade routes through Asia and the Pacific.
Missions are split almost evenly between national tasks
and what is called Cooperative Operations. National tasks include detecting
fleets of fishing vessels closer to our own coasts, investigating yachts and if
necessary reporting them to Customs officials, and reporting any oil spills to
the Maritime Safety Authority.
They perform search and rescue missions for mariners in
distress, fly over islands which have just been hammered by a tropical cyclone
or other natural disaster so observers can determine the extent of the wreckage,
and carry Department of Conservation officials on board so they can observe and
monitor wildlife on our remote sub-Antarctic islands.
Cooperative Operations take in the military side,
including our responsibility for defending the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau.
The Orions train and exercise with allies and friends so that they can
contribute to a collective effort if one is required. This could be a protective
operation such as defending naval or merchant ships at sea. Or they could
support a peace operation ashore, keeping an eye on what’s happening around
the coast or over the horizon, gathering intelligence, or escorting troop
vessels.
Given the range of possible coalition partners and the
critical need to be able to closely inter-act with them, the MPF must maintain
internationally recognised maritime patrol aircraft standards.
The MPF allows New Zealand to meet its commitment to
Australia and to pursue our common security interests, to assist with the
security of the South Pacific. Further afield, Australian and New Zealand Orions
provide the main thrust of surveillance capabilities within the Asia-Pacific
region.
Toiling pilot
boat a success
by Keith Ingram
Auckland's pilot boat, the Waitemata, has just
celebrated her eleventh year in service. As part of this celebration she
received a new paint job and a refit, including a rebuild of her main engines
and a full service of her Arneson surface drives.
Built for Ports of Auckland by McMullen and Wing in
1990, the 11.5m Stolkraft pilot boat has been one of the success stories in
providing fast, efficient, pilot services to the busy port of Auckland.
When launched in 1990, she replaced her two
predecessors, the Akarana and the older pilot vessel Waitemata, after which she
is named. Displacing some 10.5 tonnes and with a designed surface speed
of 30 knots, the Waitemata came into service at a time when the public of
Auckland was preoccupied with the wash of commercial vessels.
In some eyes, shipping and pleasure craft created local
erosion, and there were safety concerns from steep waves which capsized small
craft, particularly boaties in dinghies going out to moored vessels. Memories of
the deadly wash from the Kerridge Odeon vessel Te Kotuku still remain clear in
the minds of many boaties who experienced the sharp, sudden lurching, the
scramble to regain one's balance, and hot kettles leaping off stoves, as the
succession of her renowned three waves hit some minutes after the ferry had long
since past.
With public opinion in mind, the port company chose the
Stolkcraft design by John Lund Marine Design Pty Ltd in Australia. Stolkcraft
was a new concept for the South Pacific and New Zealand, but it had proven
seakeeping ability, providing a very stable platform that was fast and created
minimal wash when travelling at speed.
The Stolkcraft pilot craft design could be configured
with either V drive, with conventional shaft and rudders, or, as in the case of
the Waitemata, Arneson surface-piercing propellers. Once in service it was not
long before the distinctive red vessel with her foaming rooster tail got the nod
of approval from Auckland boaties, and the guarded respect for the speed at
which she travelled.
However, it was not all to be easy going. The Waitemata,
while fast and efficient, has proven to be somewhat expensive. If you want
speed, speed takes horsepower, and horses need fuel to give that horsepower.
Twin MAN D2866LE 500hp-aside engines driving two Arneson
ASD10B1S surface-piercing propellers through twin-disc MG5091 reverse-reduction
gearboxes for a service speed of 28 knots consumes 75 litres per hour of your
best performance diesel.
In the lube oil department, the Waitemata runs synthetic
oils, which have extended the need for oil changes out to every 500 hours. But
it is the vulnerability of the service drives which cause most of the short-term
disruptions to service.
Propeller damage caused by floating debris and fishing
lines cutting out the surface drives seals requires the crew to be ever
-vigilant when underway, because an encounter with either can take the Waitemata
out of service.
And as sure as God made little apples, these occurrences
happen at the most inopportune times. This is the principal reason why Ports of
Auckland maintain the service of its backup vessel, the twin-screw Paerata, an
Australian vessel by heritage, designed and built by the Melbourne Port Company
as a pilot vessel for the port of Melbourne.
The Paerata, with her service speed of 16 knots, is
recognised by her crew as being a wet boat which can operate in extreme
conditions, but because of her slower service speed she is not as efficient as
the Waitemata, and she therefore remains in the standby role.
The recent refit saw the second set of engines go into
the Waitemata during her short life span, but this is understandable once it is
recognised that the Waitemata averages 2500 hours per year. The engines had done 11,000 hours before
this major rebuild, most of which would have been at her service speed of 28 to
30 knots. The Waitemata averages some 300 jobs per month attending some 3500
shipping movements in and out of the port per annum.
Which begs the question, with so many ships visiting,
approximately 1900 per annum, with some smaller ships being exempt from the need
to use a pilot, what is the tonnage which passes through the Port of Auckland?
We are told that some 13 million tonnes annually passes
through the port. This is made up of 525,000 containers and 4.4 million tonnes
of break bulk freight, which includes some 145,000 new and used vehicles. That's
right! No fewer than 145,000 vehicles are imported through the Port of Auckland
for New Zealand roads per year.
As the Waitemata re-entered service, NZ Professional
Skipper magazine had the opportunity to take a trip out to the pilot station and
talk with her crew, comprising the skipper, Sean McCormack and the engineer,
Keith Studd, plus the pilot, Alan George.
We leave the pilot berth at Captain Cook wharf basin for
the pilot station out in the approaches to Auckland.
Once the engines are engaged we immediately realise
there's a lot of power down below. In fact, 1000hp waits to be released in the
confines of the hulls. Her low wash tri-hull design provides a very stable
platform which can deliver pilots to ships or recover them in all but the most
extreme conditions.
Looking around the wheelhouse, there are three main
forward-facing control seats for the skipper, engineer and pilot, with four more
seats behind for additional crew or pilots. It is not unusual for the Waitemata
to have to deliver two, three or sometimes four pilots to ships which are
waiting, stacked up in a queue as they approach the port.
All on-board seating is shock-resistant and sprung to
eliminate painful body jarring to the crew and passengers as she travels at
speed in sometimes snotty conditions. The pilots also like her for her speed, as
it reduces travel time from the berth to the pilot station, says Alan. In the
Waitemata's case this averages around 20 minutes, a far cry from the 50 minutes
to one hour the Akarana used to take.
It is this speed which has created the main efficiencies
of the pilot service. Shorter travel times means quicker turnarounds between
ships or transfers.
She is a pleasure for the crew to drive. She is fast and
responsive, but doesn't like it on the nose in rough weather. This, however, can
be countered by shouldering the head seas in a slight zig-zag course if need be,
which enables her to maintain service speeds and the fast turnaround timetable.
"She is superb in a following sea," says
McCormack, "and as we approach a ship she doesn't duck and dive in the
ship's wash as conventional vessels are prone to do." She is very
predictable in her movements, enabling pilot transfers to be done at 10 to 12
knots in most conditions.
"It is because of this speed and manoeuvrability
that even when we are experiencing some very rough north or nor'easterly
conditions in the Hauraki Gulf, especially out at the pilot's station, the
Waitemata can still affect a safe transfer.
"Sometimes when these marginal conditions prevail,
as we approach the ship's pilot ladder we will ask the master of the ship to
make a momentary alteration of course to bring the bow around and allow us a
window of lee or smooth water to duck into as we transfer the pilot," says
McCormack. "Once the pilot is safely on deck, the master resumes course as
we pull away."
Ensuring the efficiency of the pilot service at all
times takes three crews of two, skipper and engineer, to work a roster of
12-hour shifts, four days on and two off, then four nights on and two days off.
General mechanical and engineering maintenance and servicing is Keith Studd's
domain, while the skippers are responsible for ensuring that the vessel is kept
clean and tidy, and that all electrics and electronics are maintained in full
working order in keeping with the safe ship management policy on the vessel.
With this latest refit, the Waitemata is now set for her next five years service, in which she is expected to clock up over 10,000 hours at a service speed of 28 knots.