Ready if Rena hit again - MNZ

Maritime New Zealand chief executive Keith Manch speaks to reporters outside Tauranga District Court after the sentencing of Navigation officer of the Rena, Leonil Relon and Captain of the Rena, Mauro

If Rena was to happen again New Zealand would "absolutely" be ready for it, says the top brass of Maritime New Zealand following a report in to its response to the 2011 grounding.
Maritime New Zealand director Keith Manch addressed media and Rena stakeholders at a lunchtime meeting today and admitted the organisation was underprepared for the grounding and subsequent oil spill.
Mr March said it had learned lessons from the report which criticized maritime's communication with community, iwi and media in the days following Rena's grounding.
University of Waikato Chair in Coastal Science Professor Chris Battershill spoke of the lasting environmental impact in the bay's coast and said overall, monitoring was relatively positive, with only somecontanimants still found at Astrolabe Reef and the area surrounding the wreck.