The Government is campaigning to have two North Korean ships caught illegally fishing in a protected area off Antarctica blacklisted.

Maritime New Zealand has launched an inquiry into the Fullers GreatSights Bay of Islands vessel Excitor III after several passengers were injured, including one woman who had to spend 12 weeks in a body brace.

New images have emerged of the rip that a Piha surfing instructor took a group of teenagers into on Monday, sparking criticism from surf lifesavers at the west Auckland beach.

The Government says Petrobras is following DOC guidelines to minimise the disturbance to marine mammals while it looks for oil off the East Cape.

A body has been pulled from the water after a light plane crashed into the ocean near Orewa Beach, north of Auckland. Pieces of the wreckage are washing up on the beach.

An increase in the number of farmers failing significantly to meet effluent rules is unacceptable, says Fonterra. Significant non-compliance increased by 1 per cent to 16 per cent for the 2009/10 season.

The national drowning toll for the first two months of the year rose to 35, after 15 drownings in February.

Thirty-five jobs may be up for the chop but affected staff are being consulted before any decisions, Niwa says.

A contractor has smashed through a major underground cable in Christchurch, leaving the southern suburbs on back-up power and nearly killing himself twice in the process.

Police today released the names of six more people who died in Christchurch's February 22, magnitude 6.3 earthquake, while Education Minister Anne Tolley has announced 110 schools in the region will have reopened by next week.

Vulnerable Christchurch residents are anxiously awaiting information on whether their neighbourhood may need to be abandoned.