A year ago today the Liberian flagged cargo ship Rena ran aground on Astrolabe Reef about 25km off the coast of Tauranga causing one of the biggest environmental disasters in New Zealand's history.

One year on from the grounding she remains on the horizon - a sunken stern and battered, beaten and cut up bow.

Left: The Rena when it first grounded. Right: the Rena's bow today.

Although the oil has gone, more than 1000 containers have been removed and 600 tonnes of steel cut from the 47,000 ship, the Rena remains in the minds of many Bay of Plenty residents as its implications are far reaching – for the environment, for the Bay's economy and for the political landscape of this seaside region.

It was in the early hours of Wednesday, October 5 when the 236 metre Rena owned by Greek shipping company Daina Shipping and chartered by Mediterranean Shipping Company was steaming at 17 knots towards the Port of Tauranga en-route from Napier when it grounded on the Astrolabe Reef at about 2.20am.

It would later be revealed the ship's captain and navigation officer cut corners as they attempted to get to the Port of Tauranga ahead of time.

The ship was carrying a total of 1700 tonnes of heavy fuel oil and 1368 containers when it became stuck fast on the reef.

In the coming weeks after the ship's grounding more than 350 tonnes of oil will leak into the Bay of Plenty waters, washing up along beaches from Mount Maunganui to Maketu and beyond.

A total of 1003 containers have been removed from the Rena, many washed ashore scattering debris including meat patties, noodles, milk powder and miniature polymer plastic beads across the sands.

Today the salvage continues as Resolve workers cut the remaining bow section into pieces from the remaining forward section above the reef.

Oil continues to wash up on Bay of Plenty beaches with reports at the weekend of Papamoa residents having oil on their feet.

Debate continues over the fate of the sunken stern and if it will be left on the reef.

For a full account of the environmental disaster see SunLive's full coverage in Rena in Review - click here.

A timelime of the Rena disaster:

October 5, 2011 - 2.20 am

- The Rena grounds on the Astrolabe Reef on its way to the Port of Tauranga from Napier.

- A 1km exclusion zone is declared around the ship.

- MNZ is alerted and begins an incident response.

October 6:

- Overflights confirm the ship is leaking oil with a slick stretching 2km from the Rena.

- Four dead birds are found near the oil and the Oiled Wildlife Response Team activates.

October 7:

- A treatment base is set up at Te Maunga to care for birds affected by the oil leak.

- Two oil-drenched penguins are washed up, signalling more trouble to come.

- Heavy fuel oil surrounds the ship and the slick extends to about 6km.

October 8:

- The public are asked not to touch any oiled animals that wash up.

October 9:

- Seafood is off the menu following health warnings.

October 10:

- Pumping of fuel from the Rena's tanks onto the Awanuia begins – with 10 tonnes removed.

- Big clumps of oil start washing up stretching from Mount Main to Tay St.

October 11:

- Grounding declared 'environmental disaster'.

October 12:

- Seventy containers tumble off ship, now listing 18 degrees.

- Rena captain Mauro Balomaga arrested for charges under the Maritime Act.

October 13:

- Four containers wash ashore at the Mount, including one with burger patties.

- Beaches are officially closed while clean-up operations get underway.

- Waves of black oil wash up on Papamoa beach.

October 15:

- Thousands of volunteers signing up to help with clean-up.

October 17:

- Cracks begin to form in the Rena and it starts to split in two.

October 21:

- Beach from Mount Maunganui to Tay Street reopens for Labour Weekend.

November 2:

- Annual Guy Fawkes fireworks display cancelled at Baypark due to concerns about the noise impacting birds at Te Maunga Wildlife Response Centre.

November 3

- The Rena salvage operation has cost $14 million to date, says Transport Minister Steven Joyce.

November 16:

- Most of the beach from Mount Maunganui to Maketu reopens.

November 22:

- A first group of 49 Little Blue Penguins are released at the Mount Main Beach.

December 9:

- Container recovery speeds up with Smit Boneo crane barge starting work.

January 8:

- Rena breaks into two sections, following 6m swells, spilling 200-300 containers into the sea.

January 9:

- Containers start washing up on Waihi Beach.

January 26

- $3million recovery plan launched.

February 9:

- Te Maunga's Oiled Wildlife Centre closes after helping rehabilitate 340 penguins.

February 29:

- Rena exclusion zone reduced from three nautical miles to two nautical miles around the Astrolabe Reef.

March 8:

- A report from the Transport Accident Investigation Committee points to human error causing the grounding.

April 4:

- Almost six months to the day after the Rena was grounded, the stern sinks.

May 25:

- Rena's master Mauro Balomaga and second officer Leonil Relon are sentenced to seven month's jail on a total of 11 charges laid by Maritime New Zealand.

July 24:

- The Rena's owner apologises for the ship's grounding and oil spill at meetings with iwi and dignitaries.

September 5:

- Rena's master and second officer are released from prison then deported back to the Philippines.

October 2:

- A $27.6million settlement is reached between the government and Rena owners.

October 4:

- An independent review into the Maritime New Zealand's response to the Rena grounding is announced.

October 5:

- The one year anniversary of the grounding of the Rena.

By the Numbers:

25: Crew onboard at the time of grounding.

27.6: Million - the compensation deal between the ship's owners and NZ Government.

47: Million - the amount spent by the NZ Government on the clean-up.

235: Million dollars spent by owners and insurers on the salvage and clean-up operations, including $95 million spent within New Zealand.

236: The length of the Rena in metres.

267: The estimated containers lost overboard.

345: Oiled Little Blue Penguins cared for at Te Maunga's the wildlife response centre.

350: The minimum estimate of tonnes of oil that escaped in the first week.

365: Unrecovered containers.

1003: Containers recovered to date.

1041: Tonnes of waste collected in the beach clean-up.

1368: Containers on board when grounded.

1712: Tonnes of oil onboard.

2410: Dead birds collected, including 1448 that were oiled.

4878: Tonnes of waste removed from containers.

8061: Volunteers registered for the beach clean-up.