Oil spill- New Zealand

An oil spill has occurred on the eastern coast of New Zealand near Tauranga late yesterday. So far around 50 tons of hazardous oil has been leaked into the ocean and now there are reports of oil washing up on the New Zealand beaches. The government of new Zealand are urging tourists on the beaches to not go near the oil due to health hazards and its high flammability. The oil spill is now threatening the diverse wildlife in the region which includes penguins, seals and various birds. Additionally the impacted area s located in wildlife migration routes which could pose problems to dolphins and whales migrating for the wintertime. The cargo ship that spilled the oil was called the Rena, after it ran across a reef rupturing the tanker. The total amount of fuel in the ship was 1700 tons of oil. Efforts are slow to start the cleanup of the oil and the WWF are worried that these slow efforts will only worsen the situation for wildlife in the region.

Article:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/oct/10/new-zealand-oil-spill-wildlife-tragedy?newsfeed=true


An oil covered penguin off the coast of NZ
http://www.voxy.co.nz/files/imagecache/news_item_image/files/blue-penguin_1.jpg