Negativity in the media about Tauranga's holiday climes owing to the Rena oil spill have spurred Mayor Stuart Crosby to assure people the area is still a top summer spot.

The Rena ran aground on Astrolabe Reef on October 5 and since then oil, containers and debris have washed ashore, damaging the environment and closing beaches.

Clean-up crews are continuing to remove oil globules off the beach after the major initial clean-up.

Stuart says he would like to assure people the Rena situation isn't as bad as portrayed in some media reports.

He says people who have booked a Bay of Plenty holiday for the summer should follow through with it.
'Salvors have removed all but 358 tonnes of oil from the vessel now,” says Stuart.

'To put that in perspective, when the initial 370 tonnes spill happened last month, our passionate, committed and motivated community had it cleaned up within a few days.

'The salvage operations may be ongoing for some time, but that doesn't mean our beaches are going to be affected for all that time.

'And if another spill happens, then we'll all be out there cleaning our beaches until they are returned to their beautiful best, ready for the summer season.”
He says the community is 100 per cent committed to restoring the beaches as quickly as humanly possible.
'This is the first time anywhere in the world that volunteers have been used to assist with the clean-up of an oil spill and it appears to be working remarkably well.”

Booms, cranes and skimmers are in place to assist with the oil clean-up along with an army of volunteers.
Stuart is confident the city's beaches will be open again for summer.

'Almost all Bay of Plenty activities and attractions are operating as normal – so come enjoy the Bay of Plenty.”