A Bay of Islands conservation group is applauding the fines handed out to a developer and contractor for dumping fill in a wetland reserve.
In April a developer working on house sites on Waimangaro Rd, between Paihia and Opua, used an estimated 10-15cu m of fill to create an accessway across a wetland.
The area is a public reserve but even if it was private land anyone wanting to modify an indigenous wetland needs to get a Northland Regional Council consent first.
The developer was given until 5pm on April 29 to remove the fill.
Regional council regulatory services manager Colin Dall said an officer with expertise in wetland ecosystems assessed the damage after the developer removed the soil.