Oil spill on Great Barrier Reef

Photo / Supplied

A coal ship stuck on the Great Barrier Reef is in danger of breaking apart and spilling up to 975 tonnes of heavy fuel oil in the national marine park.

The Chinese-owned, 230m-long bulk coal carrier Shen Neng 1 ran aground about 70km east of Great Keppel Island shortly after 5pm (local time) on Saturday.

Maritime authorities and Yeppoon Water Police are on standby to rescue the ship's crew of 24 if required.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh told reporters on Sunday that the carrier, loaded with 65,000 tonnes of coal, was in danger of breaking apart.

She said the vessel was going at full speed without a marine pilot in a restricted zone, 15km outside the shipping lane, when it hit a shoal.

A ribbon of oil measuring approximately three kilometres by 100 metres has so far leaked from the vessel, which is carrying about 975 tonnes of heavy fuel oil.

Maritime Safety Queensland said the oil leak was relatively small at this stage, but it was a "persistent" substance and was expected to take some time to break apart.

Maritime Safety Queensland has activated a national oil spill response plan, under which the state and federal governments will assess how best to salvage the ship and limit the seepage of oil into the waters of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

Ms Bligh said a comprehensive inquiry would establish why Shen Neng 1 was outside the shipping channel.

Aircraft have been spraying chemical oil dispersant on two small patches of oil about four kilometres from the Shen Neng 1.

Local State Emergency Service crews and councils are on standby in case any oil reaches land, Ms Bligh said.

Any further leaks could take two days to reach the coast but would be most likely to hit beaches in the Shoalwater Bay National Park, she said.

"This ship is in a very damaged condition, and the worry now is that the salvage operation may disturb the ship in a way that sees more oil discharged," Ms Bligh said.

Captain Patrick Quirk, general manager of Maritime Safety Queensland, said the vessel was badly damaged in several places.

"The continued leakage of oil is probably the best case we could expect," he told reporters.

"At one stage last night, we thought the ship was close to breaking up.

"It is in danger of actually breaking a number of its main structures and breaking into a number of parts."

Being aground on a shoal, the ship would not sink, but could break apart.

Captain Quirk said a salvage contract had been agreed, but assessment of the damage could take a week.

Federal Environment Protection Minister Peter Garrett said the government was very conscious of the importance of the Great Barrier Reef and ensuring that impacts on its ecology were effectively managed.

Despite no legal requirement for a marine pilot to be onboard the vessel, Greens leader Bob Brown called on the government to make it mandatory when travelling through the inner passage to the Great Barrier Reef.

"Both Canberra and Brisbane have bowed to the coal and shipping companies to avoid this common sense requirement," he said in a statement on Sunday.

Ms Bligh said the issue of pilotage through parts of the reef is under active study given the increased number of vessels as huge amounts of coal and liquefied natural gas are exported.

Queensland Greens spokeswoman Larissa Waters said the Great Barrier Reef should not be used as a coal highway.

"The state government is being blinded by royalties and their short-sightedness will go down in history as killing the reef," Ms Waters said.

- AAP