Operations to contain Awakino River oil spill continue

A tanker overturned in Awakino Gorge near Mokau yesterday afternoon, leaking 20,000 litres of oil into the river. File photo / NZ Herald

Operations to deal with an oil spill into the Awakino River in the King Country will continue for the rest of the day and overnight, as Waikato Regional Council battles to contain the slick.

This will be followed by an assessment tomorrow morning of what more needs to be done.

The spill came after a tanker overturned in Awakino Gorge near Mokau yesterday afternoon, leaking 20,000 litres of oil into the river.

The council said there was a big oil slick near Awakino boat ramp, close to the river mouth, about 98km northeast of New Plymouth.

A floating containment boom had been installed at the Awakino boat ramp and sucker trucks were being used to extract oil from the major spill.

Another special boom is also set to be installed at a bridge about 4km from the river mouth. This boom will absorb oil as well as trap it.

Where possible, boat propellers will be used to agitate any trapped oil sitting in the edges of the river so it will be sent down toward the booms.

The council said today that it appeared most of the oil had gone out to sea overnight and that an initial assessment indicated no major environmental impacts around the river mouth or on the coast.

Staff from the council, Massey University and the Department of Conversation will be having further discussions about additional environmental impact assessment work that has been carried out this afternoon.

There is some concern that birds living in riverside reeds may have been harmed. If any animals or birds need particular care, arrangements are in place to evacuate them to Palmerston North.

Council group manager Chris McLay said staff from the council and other agencies would remain on site overnight and that an assessment of what more needs to be done would be carried out in the morning.

"Agencies have worked really well together to respond to this spill. We are hopeful that environmental impacts will be limited. But we want to make sure we carry out a thorough analysis tomorrow to ensure we make the right decisions about the future management of this incident."

An incident control room had been set up in the council's headquarters in Hamilton.

The trucking company involved was helping the council with the operation.

Mr McLay urged people to stay away from the river while staff worked to manage the situation.

"We'd also advise people to stay away from the oil if they come across any on land. If they discover distressed animal or bird life they should advise the Department of Conservation."

Mr McLay said another reason to keep away from the river area at the moment was that rain was forecast and this could cause water levels to rise rapidly.

- NZPA