Concerns raised after petrol spill

Some Owaka residents have questions in the aftermath of a hazardous chemical callout.

‘‘Crews responded to a large petrol spill in Owaka on Friday 27 February ... around 4.56am,’’ a Fire Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) spokesperson confirmed.

‘‘It’s estimated around 300 litres of petrol was spilt while a petrol tanker was refuelling. A crew from Owaka attended, ensured [it] was safe and there was no risk to the public. The scene was then passed on to ... Otago Regional Council (ORC) and the company involved.’’

An ORC spokesman said that afternoon the spill had been contained.

‘‘ORC was notified by Fenz just after 6am ... [and] had staff on site by 8.30[am],’’ he said.

‘‘Fenz and ORC both deployed oil spill equipment at the site. The spill, thought to be about 300 litres, has since been cleaned up and that includes the company concerned cleaning out nearby mud tanks.

‘‘There’s no evidence so far that any of the spill got into waterways [but] we’ll still go back and monitor it.’’

But residents who asked not to be named said they thought 300 litres was ‘‘conservative’’.

They indicated stains around kerb gutters from Owaka Motors RD Petroleum fuel station about 100m to the Ryley St storm drain, took photos of a slick on the drain ditch behind the Owaka Inn, and collected samples from it which smelled of petrol.

The waterway leads to the Owaka river about 1km away, and a further sample collected on Monday, March 2 after a weekend of heavy rain still smelled of petrol.

On the Monday afternoon, RD Petroleum Operations Manager Jordan Teheuheu confirmed the incident, but was surprised to hear stream samples smelled of petrol.

‘‘We just spoke to the Otago Regional Council and they said that there is nothing in the waterways,’’ he said

‘‘We’re already working with the council on it and we’ll continue to do so ... But in terms of what you’ve just told me, I’ll need to ring the council about that because, as I said, we’re speaking to them throughout and that’s a serious concern.’’

He also emailed a statement reiterating ‘‘the spill was identified quickly and emergency services were notified. Containment measures were implemented and the spill was cleaned straight away ... We’ll continue to work with the council as required’’.

An ORC pollution hotline team was on site on March 2 and ORC investigations team leader Peter Kelliher said the council was awaiting the results of water quality samples, taken from various locations along the waterway.

‘‘Once all sampling test results have been received and our investigation is complete, we will be able to make an informed decision regarding this matter,’’ he said.

‘‘Iwi have been notified.’’

But residents were confused that the council had initially said fuel had not reached the waterway.

‘‘The stream is right over the road from the storm drain ... You could see it and smell it on the water,’’ they said.