By Simon Shepherd
The chief of the Rena salvage operation says the wreck should stay on the reef.
It's now one year since the container ship ran aground, spilling oil and eventually succumbing to the sea, but the fallout is far from over.
“For a lot of the wreck to be left there I think it would be a good thing because wrecks are made all over the world, and wrecks are made for recreational divers and the fish,” says salvage master Frank Leckey.
That option would mean the ship's owner would pay an extra $10 million to the Government. But iwi don't want the money, they just want what everyone agreed to.
When the Rena hit the Astrolabe reef one year ago 350 tonnes of oil was spilt, causing untold damage to the environment.
And the impact on tourist numbers is also undeniable. Papamoa Holiday Park lost $45,000 in bookings in one week last year.
Bookings are going back up - but it's taken hard marketing to win them back.
"We are feeling positive, we don't want to be negative any more and so we are keen for a successful summer," says Rebecca Crosby of Papamoa Holiday Park.
But the iwi's idea of a successful summer is the ship ending up in a salvage yard, not remaining on the reef.
One yard has processed up to 3,000 tonnes from the Rena, from cargo to containers to the bow of the ship, that's being cut and sent overseas to be recycled.
There's still another 2500 tonnes to go, but salvage is very expensive and very dangerous.
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