Vessel Incident MV. RENA by the numbers

Rena oil spill response teams involved in different types of foreshore cleaning operations are making good progress, says Maritime New Zealand (MNZ).

Dayne Maxwell, MNZ Planning Manager for the Rena response, said the method used for cleaning the foreshore depended on the type of marine environment and the most appropriate process to remove any oil.

“Cleaning operations can take the form of warm water washing, hand washing, hand collection, or mechanical grooming.  Different approaches are being used for sandy beaches, rocky habitat and island foreshore areas, with the support of iwi liaison,” Mr Maxwell said.

Mechanical beach grooming using two vehicles has been carried out along the coastline from Leisure Island (Moturiki) to the Omanu Surf Club, a distance of more than four kilometres.  The beach operations team are now moving towards Papamoa east and are picking up a large proportion of the remaining oil.

“Recent strong winds have exposed tar balls and patches of old oil from earlier swells above the high tide mark,” Mr Maxwell said.

“The oil we’re currently finding is between the sand dunes and  the high tide mark and we’re working systematically to remove it.”

The total of solid waste so far removed from the coastline is 953 tonnes, with 1,331 m3 of liquid waste removed to date. The waste is being processed at a specially prepared site at Hampton Downs in the Waikato.

The Adopt-A-Beach programme complements the foreshore cleaning operations being led by MNZ and supported by local volunteers. Interested people should contact renavolunteers@gmail.com  or call 0800 884 881 extn RENA (7362).

Members of the public are still asked to report any signs of fresh oiling on the beaches.

At the height of the response approximately 600–800 people were involved in the oil spill response team,** including members of the Incident Command Centre (ICC) and people in the field undertaking beach clean-up and wildlife response. Numbers as at 14 November are.

• Around 50 staff managing the overall response from the ICC
• Over 50 New Zealand Defence Force personnel on standby to respond within 24hours for any further assistance required.
• Around 40 oil spill responders working in the field.
• 80 people working in the wildlife response team, including National Oiled Wildlife Response Team personnel, veterinarians, ornithologists and expert responders with experience in the capture and treatment of oiled birds and volunteers.
• 1 Department of Conservation personnel providing field support to the wildlife response, conducting field surveys, collecting live and dead oiled wildlife, and providing logistical support, with others available at short notice.
• Another 16 oil spill responders working in the field.
• Technical advice and personnel has been provided from Australia, the UK, US, Netherlands and Singapore, with offers of assistance and equipment and under international agreements

Beach clean up

• 922 tonnes of waste collected
• A total of 7,937 volunteers are registered in the volunteer database

Salvage

• Over 1,000 tonnes of oil recovered through fuel recovery operations on board Rena (at 5.30pm on 30 October).
• 319 tonnes removed from the starboard no. 5 tank, as at 3.30pm on 13 November.
• 1,712 tonnes of oil on board Rena when it grounded
• Around 350 tonnes of oil lost overboard off Rena initially
• 5–10 tonnes of oil lost overnight on Saturday 22 October
• 25 crew on board Rena at time of grounding
• 40 member salvage team from the appointed salvage company Svitzer with local support teams and colleagues providing round-the-clock technical advice and analysis from Australia, Singapore and the Netherlands

Containers

• 1,368 containers on board Rena at time of grounding
• 814 containers stored below deck
• 121 containers with perishable foodstuffs
• 11 containers with dangerous goods
• 87 containers (total) lost overboard - 19 of these have been recovered
• 95 containers removed since container recovery began on November 16
• 220 transponders fitted to containers

Wildlife

• 500 birds can be housed at the Wildlife treatment and rehabilitation facility established in Te Maunga
• 409 animals being cared for at the wildlife facility
• 343 clean little blue penguins
• 2 oiled little blue penguin
• 4 clean pied shags
• 60 rare New Zealand dotterels pre-emptively caught and held in wildlife centre
• 100 rare New Zealand dotterels in Bay of Plenty area
• 1,500 rare New Zealand dotterels in existence
• 2,008 dead birds collected

Equipment

• 1 Squirrel Helicopter for winching people on and off Rena
• 1 C172 aircraft used for aerial observation flight
• 2 MNZ-owned oil recovery vessels, Kuaka from Auckland and Tukuperu from Picton
• 1 anchor-handling tug, Go Canopus, on site for container recovery, receiving oil and capable of maintaining station in poor weather
• 1 landing craft vessel Brandy Wine
• 1 barge Sea Tow 60
• 1,200 metres of ocean-going booms from across New Zealand
• Salvage equipment brought by Svitzer includes air compressors, power generators, chains, shackles, ropes, tools and oil removal equipment
• 5 NZDF Army Unimogs

Equipment used during the reponse that has subsequently been stood down:

• 1 double-hulled tanker Awanuia, capable of receiving oil from Rena
• 2 Port of Auckland tugs Maui and Waka Kume and Auckland barge Paponui
• 1 tug Swiber Torunn
• 1 crane ship Pancaldo
• 1 Bell 214 Helicopter flying equipment to Rena, carrying 3 tonnes at a time
• 3 local tugs mobilised to intercept drifting containers and debris
• 3 mussel barges, Ocean Phoenix, Northern Quest and Union Beach, used for on-water oil recovery operations
• 3 NZDF Navy inshore patrol vessels, Rotoiti, Hawea, Taupo, and Pukaki
• 1 NZDF Navy fuel tanker Endeavour
• NZDF light operational vehicles
• NZDF Seasprite helicopter
• 5 NZDF Unimogs
• NZDF literal warfare support group personnel and assets, conducting surveys of shipping lanes

At the height of the response there were

• between 200–300 personnel managing the response from the incident command centre. These included people from MNZ, the National Response Team, regional and local councils, Massey University, the Department of Conservation, the University of Waikato, WWF and New Zealand Fire Service. This figure also includes trained oil spill responders leading volunteers and other personnel in the field.
• around 150 NZDF personnel, from the Air Force, Navy and Army, with another 150 on short notice to respond as needed
• around 150 Department of Conservation personnel providing field support to the wildlife response, conducting field surveys, collecting live and dead oiled wildlife, and providing logistical support, with others available at short notice
• around 100 people working in the wildlife response team, including National Oiled Wildlife Response Team personnel, veterinarians, ornithologists and expert responders with experience in the capture and treatment of oiled birds.

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