Maritime New Zealand reviews of both the rafting and jet-boating industries were progressing, and changes to rafting rules were expected to be signed by Cabinet in "a matter of days", an MNZ spokeswoman said yesterday.
The spokeswoman said the changes, which were likely to be in force for summer, were a matter of "fine tuning".
The rules would extend to cover training of rafting guides, updated qualifications and requirements for first aid, and river rescue training.
There was also a "relaxation in requirements" for low-risk rafting, and the rules would be extended to cover "dry hire on a commercial basis", where parties hired rafts without commercial guides.
However, the new jet-boating rules were not expected to be put in place until next year, the spokeswoman said.
Those changes were "more a matter of formalising best practice" and adding to the existing framework.
Consultation on the proposed changes began last week, and submissions would close in October.
