Up to 20 birds have been coated with oil after a major spill which clogged a King Country river on Wednesday.

A young emperor penguin has a 50 per cent chance of survival after filling its throat with sand from a Kapiti Coast beach.

New Zealand's biggest superyacht, owned by the country's richest man Graeme Hart, crept into Auckland Harbour this week. The yacht Weta is Hart's latest toy - and his third enormous yacht.

New environmental protection laws for New Zealand's exclusive economic zone will come into effect next year.