WELLINGTON (Reuters) - A New Zealand couple's hot idea for a cool wedding -- tying the knot on an iceberg -- has been put on ice, local media reported on Friday.

Lawyer Bridget Byers and builder Donald Wyatt from the southern city of Dunedin had planned to marry on one of the many icebergs floating off the east coast of the South Island, the Otago Daily Times reported.

But helicopter pilot Richard "Hannibal" Hayes, who was due to fly the pair and a marriage celebrant to one of the bergs, said plans were on hold because the job was too risky.

The slow thaw of the icebergs as they moved north meant they were constantly shedding ice, and it was difficult to find a safe haven for the lovebirds to land on.

It seems also that in a legal sense the pair were skating on thin ice.

New Zealand law required that people had to be within 12 nautical miles of the coast to be married legally, and the closest iceberg has been at least twice that distance from the coast.

Byers would not discuss the nuptials saying talks were under way with a woman's magazine over rights to cover the ceremony. But it remained unclear whether the couple would proceed with their plans.