Beach grooming is underway to keep our beaches clean and safe.
What’s happening?
From November 2025 to 6 April 2026, the beach grooming team will remove small pieces of debris and waste from the sand using a mechanical surf rake towed behind a tractor.
This work will take place in five key areas:
- Pilot Bay
- Mount Maunganui Main Beach
- near Omanu Surf Club
- near Tay Street
- near Pāpāmoa Domain.
Beach grooming will run twice weekly through November and December, daily from 26 December to 10 January, and three times a week for the rest of January. The work will reduce to once weekly in February, March, and the first week of April after the busy holiday period.
Crews will operate early mornings, 3am to 8am, to minimise disruption for beachgoers.
Why are we doing this?
Our beaches are a big part of what makes Tauranga special. Keeping them clean protects the environment and ensures safe public use. This work removes plastics, rubbish, and other inorganic matter that can harm wildlife and people. The initiative was requested by the community and carried out by Council as part of our city beautification and welfare programme.
How will it be done?
Mechanical grooming uses a tractor towing a specialised sand grooming machine. Debris collected from the beach is loaded onto a tipper truck and sorted into food, plastic, glass, and general waste—then recycled or disposed of appropriately. Crews also clean up remnants of beach and dune fires using a shaking sift device to collect nails and glass, and remove dangerous logs, structures, and other foreign materials along the foreshore.
What can you expect to see?
If you’re out early, you might spot a large orange tractor towing a lime green grooming machine, moving back and forth across the five locations. Flashing lights and safety signage will be visible during operations.
Hand grooming will also continue north of the volleyball courts on Mount Main Beach until the dotterel season has finished.