Public opinion requested for draft Coastal Structures Policy

The Tauranga waterfront. Photo / File

A draft policy to guide decisions on how council manages and maintains public coastal structures will go up for public consultation later this year.

The draft Coastal Structures Policy was adopted by Tauranga City Council yesterday.

Public coastal structures included seawalls, jetties, wharves and rock revetments on public land.

The policy included criteria for determining when council would maintain or stop maintaining a structure and guided the way council prioritised the annual budget to manage the structures.

General manager of strategy and growth Christine Jones said it would be an important topic for the community to consider as Tauranga had areas that were susceptible to cliff instability and erosion.

"The potential impacts of this will likely increase over time, based on sea level rise projections," she said.

The proposed changes would help prioritise attention to the coastal structures that protected from erosion and gave less priority to structures built for recreational purposes.

The draft policy focused on protecting water infrastructure, essential transportation infrastructure, and public access around the coast.

The council will be asking the community for their views on the proposed policy changes in October and November.