Marine oil spills Ngā rukenga hinu i te moana
For urgent marine spills in the coastal marine area, including oil, petrol or diesel spills, contact the Harbourmaster 24-hour emergency duty officer.
Contact the Harbourmaster
To report an oil spill, email the Harbourmaster's office or if urgent call 09 3620397 to speak to a duty officer.
Oil spill response strategy
The New Zealand oil spill response strategy is based on a 3-tiered system.
Tier 1 — site based
For example, a vessel refuelling operation at a marina. Tier 1 sites are required to develop a spill response plan (including having appropriate response equipment) and respond to spills from their site. Auckland Transport (AT) audits and approves these plans on a regular basis. No site is allowed to transfer fuel unless it has a current approved plan.
Tier 2 — regional level
AT responds to all marine oil spills. Including, spills from unknown sources and spills beyond the capability of a tier 1 site
Tier 3 — national response level
Maritime New Zealand have developed a National Plan for use in large spills. They become involved in spills that are outside of the capacity of AT to respond. Maritime New Zealand also provides training and equipment to responders in the Auckland Transport team.
To learn more about marine oil spills go to the Maritime New Zealand website.
All reported oil spills are investigated. If the oil spill is too large to deal with locally, Maritime New Zealand staff and a National Response Team will assist.