Owners urged to deal with old, derelict vessels before crisis point

Waikato Regional Harbourmaster Chris Bredenbeck.

The Waikato Regional Harbourmaster has a simple message for owners of old, derelict vessels moored in the region: Please manage your boat properly to avoid it turning into a crisis and a costly burden on ratepayers.

On average, Waikato Regional Council’s Maritime Services team has to recover four vessels each year which have either sunk on their mooring, or their mooring has failed or broken and the vessel has grounded or sunk.

The cost to ratepayers of dealing with each of these vessels can vary from $5000 to as much as $50,000.

“This is a big problem for us in the Waikato just as it is for regional councils across Aotearoa,” says Chris Bredenbeck, the regional harbourmaster.

“It’s unwanted work for the council due to the owners of the vessels not having the funds or capacity to manage their own vessels.

“There are unfortunately dozens of very old vessels across our harbours which are not being maintained and reaching a point where they are irreparable.”

The boating bylaws require that vessels be seaworthy at all times when on the water and it is the owner who is responsible.

Most problem vessels are amongst the approximately 850 ‘zoned moorings’ in the Waikato region. Moorings usually consist of a large block weight, heavy bottom chain and a combination of chains, swivels and rope to which the vessel is secured to. Vessels swing around the mooring according to the tide, but they are attached to a stable point and are much more secure than a vessel at anchor.

The ‘swing moorings’, as they are also called, are privately owned and usually found in zoned mooring areas within the west and east coast harbours of the Waikato region.

Maritime Services staff do regular patrols, looking for vulnerabilities in the mooring lines. Council staff cover a region with 420km of the Waikato River including multiple hydrolakes and 1132km of coastline. The number of boating trips in the region is conservatively estimated at more than 160,000 per year, which includes a sizeable summer influx.

In February this year, council contractors pull a 36-foot boat ashore at Waiomu for demolition and disposal after it was holed by rocks. The vessel was in very poor condition and unable to be repaired. We ensured there was no oil spill and then managed the situation.

“When we spot an issue with a vessel, we try to locate the owner and highlight the risk to them with the aim of getting the owner themself to remedy the situation,” says Chris.

A maritime officer may temporarily secure a vessel that is at risk of breaking away from its mooring, such as during a storm.

Weather can be a hugely problematic factor and may result in a vessel breaking vulnerable moorings. During Cyclone Gabrielle, for example, six vessels in the Waikato came away from their moorings and were either grounded or sank.

“We can also step in to deal with a vessel at risk of sinking, to stop matters getting worse. This includes pumping out water from a boat that has become flooded after heavy rains or, where there is a leak in the hull, trying to keep the vessel afloat. We try to mitigate and remove the risk.

“When a vessel sinks or becomes grounded it suddenly escalates to an emergency that can have dire environmental consequences. In such situations our initial priority is to deal with any oil spill risk, usually a combination of diesel and oil.

“We may need the fuel tanks pumped out to remove contaminants from the vessels and stop them entering the water. Once that is managed, we move on to considering the navigation safety issues. Is the vessel going to be a hazard for other vessels?

“We do all we can to get owners—who are ultimately responsible for their own vessels—to deal with their own problems. Sometimes it can be difficult to find the owner of a boat on a swing mooring, as the ownership of the vessel can change multiple times in a year, and the mooring owners don’t always let us know they have a different vessel on their mooring.”

While Waikato Regional Council maintains contact details of the mooring consent holders, those contact details are not always updated by the owners meaning that it is sometimes hard to locate the owner of any particular mooring.

“When we can’t find an owner or the owner has no capacity to remove the vessel, the Waikato Regional Harbourmaster can remove a grounded or sunken vessel for disposal using the powers in the Maritime Transport Act.

“We do try to recover the costs from the owner for that work where we can.”

Chris says the cost-of-living crisis is likely affecting many boat owners. Old vessels are expensive to maintain and that cost increases rapidly as they fall further into disrepair.

“It is evident this year that even some of the newer and nicer boats have not been so well cared for as previously, but it generally takes decades of neglect before vessels come to our attention.

“We are typically dealing with super old boats that are poorly maintained with hard-to-find owners.

“Sadly, it’s often elderly folk involved. They may have bought a cheap boat years ago with dreams of doing it up, but as time passed, their priorities changed or they couldn’t afford maintenance costs and their boat has become increasingly derelict.”

Chris says warrant of fitness or safety inspection would be a useful tool in helping to manage vessels, although a bigger priority is the licensing of skippers.

Vessels on swing moorings off Raglan wharf.

“We advocate strongly for skipper licensing—which would ensure that vessel owners would be aware of the rules and their obligations around boating safety—but it requires change at central government level.”

In terms of practical advice for boaties, Chris says he would caution anyone considering buying a secondhand boat to get it surveyed by a professional surveyor, so they can get an accurate appraisal of its condition before deciding to buy. It’s like getting an AA check on a secondhand car.

“The simple fact is that people need to maintain their boats. This includes having the proper equipment, such as an automatic bilge pump, checking their vessels regularly and paying close attention to how their vessel is connected to its mooring.

“After a heavy weather event, go check on your boat and make sure everything is in order.”

For people with old boats on moorings, it’s important for owners to make an honest assessment of their situation.

“If your boat has had its day, consider getting rid of the vessel and selling the mooring. It will save you a lot of potential trouble and cost, and free up the mooring for someone else.”

Maritime Services are available to give advice and put owners in touch with professionals who can help.