Multipurpose cargo ship Ningpo, owned by Singapore-headquartered China Navigation, has spilled fuel while berthing at Northport in Whangarei Harbour today.
, owned by Singapore-headquartered China Navigation, has spilled fuel while berthing at Northport in Whangarei Harbour today.Oil spill response units are working to clean up the oil in order prevent further contamination to the nearby coastal region.
According to Jim Lyle, Regional Harbourmaster for the Northland Regional Council, specialized oil containment booms had been put in place both around the vessel and to help protect the nearby coastal environment. Some oil has already reached the shore at Marsden Cove.
A spokesperson for China Navigation told Splash: “The China Navigation Company is assisting authorities at Whangarei Harbour, New Zealand, with cleaning up and ascertaining the source of an oil slick. Most of the escaped oil was contained under a response operation headed by the Northland Regional Council Harbour Master.
“The China Navigation Company takes any environmental incident extremely seriously and is cooperating fully with the authorities.”
The harbourmaster will be leading the investigation into the cause of the incident and said the primary focus today is on containing the spill and protecting the local environment.
China Navigation said that the vessel is expected to depart for Auckland once hull cleaning is completed.
