Overwhelming call for government action on time bomb shipwreck
Friday, 23 June 2023
A poll has shown nearly three-quarters of New Zealanders want government action to help solve the problem of an oil-leaking wreck in the Hauraki Gulf.
In the Horizon Research poll, 73% said they wanted the government to take initial action on the wreck. Only 8% said they didn’t want the wreck inspected.
The passenger ship RMS Niagara was sunk in 1940 by a German mine about 30km off Northland’s east coast, in 120m of water.
While some of its fuel oil was spilt at the time, and during subsequent operations to salvage gold on board, experts say there could be hundreds of tonnes of heavy oil still in its decaying fuel tanks.
**READ MORE:
* More pressure comes on Minister over Niagara shipwreck threat
* Diver watched as friend became disoriented and descended to death on famous shipwreck
* New Zealand shipwrecks you can visit
**
Continued corrosion, and reports of oil slicks above the Niagara, have led to concerns the wreck is a ticking time bomb, and could collapse at any moment, causing an unprecedented environmental disaster in the middle of some of the country’s most pristine marine and island reserves.
However, despite Maritime New Zealand repeatedly advising that a survey be carried out of the wreck’s condition and the risk of an oil spill, successive governments have failed to act and fund the work.
Current associate transport minister Kiritapu Allan has claimed any survey could cause an oil spill, and said the government was “focused on bread and butter issues and supporting Kiwis during a cost of living crisis.”
The Horizons poll, conducted for the Hauraki Gulf Forum, a statutory body with environmental responsibility for the area, surveyed a representative sample of 1100 New Zealanders.
It was carried out between June 8-12, and has a maximum margin of error of +/-3%.
While 73% wanted the government to inspect the wreck, just 8% opposed this, and 16% weren’t sure.
Hauraki Gulf Forum chief executive Alex Rogers said the poll was conducted to find out what “the public at large think about the inaction of the government, and the minister, on this.”
People were provided with background on the issue, and both sides of the argument about whether a survey should be done to gauge how much oil remained on the wreck, and what hazard it posed.
“And an overwhelming majority said the government should act now to investigate the wreck, and that was the right and prudent and proper thing to do,” said Rogers.
The poll results have been sent to Allan, along with the minsters of conservation, oceans and fisheries, defence, and Māori development, along with Maritime New Zealand.
An accompanying letter stated the Hauraki Gulf Forum had “a real sense of urgency, and a feeling of disbelief that we are not doing more to avert this potential disaster.”
It called on Allan to take the information to Cabinet, and obtain funding so Maritime NZ could coordinate a full, non-invasive survey of the wreck.
“With your leadership we can avert a potential crisis of national and international significance.”
As well as the Hauraki Gulf Forum co-chairs, the letter was also signed by the heads of the Auckland, Waikato, and Northland Conservation Boards, and Northland Regional Council representatives.
The Forum has requested a meeting with Allan to discuss the Niagara, “as soon as possible”.
Maritime NZ estimates from 2020 put the cost of an initial survey of the Niagara between $850,000 and $1.6 million.
The cost of a major oil spill from the wreck, if nothing is done, has been estimated to be up to $108 million, not counting effects on wildlife.
The German government has offered to consider helping fund a survey of the wreck, and possible removal of oil from it, if the New Zealand government asks.
Allan initially said she had no plans to approach the German government, but now says she won’t rule it out.