Source: Radio New Zealand
Wellington authorities have decided it is safe enough for swimmers to make their own calls about whether to jump in at the south coast. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
A local diver says he will eat shellfish from the south coast after the mayor has tried some kina from the sewage spill hot spot.
Wellington authorities have decided it is safe enough for swimmers to make their own calls about whether to jump in but kaimoana is a different story.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and Public Health strongly advised people not to collect and consume shellfish from the south coast area as they could be contaminated for weeks after exposure to sewage.
But Wellington diver Eugene Ryder said on Thuirsday the mixed messaging was confusing and people should keep out of the water all together.
“Even if you are swimming, the water is gonna get in your ears, your nose and your mouth.
“It just doesn’t make sense that you can do one and not the other, I think it’s preferable that everyone waits till we’re allowed to collect kaimoana before you even get in to swim.
“I thought the mayor was pretty courageous jumping in there yesterday.
“I definitely wouldn’t.”
Wellington mayor Andrew Little swims at Lyall Bay after announcing the lifting of a swimming ban. RNZ / Mark Papalii
But MPI said it was not quite that simple.
“Shellfish they filter water.”
MPI’s deputy director general of food safety Vincent Arbuckle said that was what made it different to swimming.
“A mussel will filter up to 70 litres of water a day, and they condense bacteria and viruses and contaminants. So that’s very different from taking a quick dip in the water.
“If you eat something that’s filtered 70 litres of water, you’re getting a condensed version of whatever’s in the water.”
And in the water there had been millions of litres of untreated sewage.
It was a similar story for grazers paua and kina.
But because the south coast had been closed, those still keen to get in the water had been travelling further afield.
“All the divers are going to Makara, to Titahi Bay … Some are going around to Ngawi and further around on the other side. But it’s put pressure on those areas.”
Some divers had instead been encouraging each other to use the rāhui to check and update their gear, rather than be in the water.
“But unfortunately, there’s been quite a few people going into west coast of Wellington and just hammering it.”
He said in one area he had seen 50 boats out at once which was hugely unusual.
But until south coast kaimoana was on the menu, that would likely remain the situation, Ryder said.
MPI’s Arbuckle said that would take at least three weeks in a perfect world.
“From a sewerage release, around 28 days is normally the period that we would say it’s usually safe if nothing else has happened.”
Dive Wellington runs sessions in the Taputeranga Marine Reserve almost everyday. Supplied / Dave Drane
Dave Drane from Dive Wellington did not think his usual south coast hot spot, Shark’s Tooth, will be back by then.
He was hoping slightly further afield might come back faster.
“We’ll stick to gathering kaimoana off Red Rocks and places like that.
“It’s pretty tidal and it would take a lot for any sewage to reach there. It’ll go out to sea before it reaches there,” Drane said.
Ryder had a different plan.
“When we see our mayor eating a kina that’s been collected from Princess Bay, then, yeah, then we’ll have a look at it.
“But we’ll wait to see what effect it has on his health first.”
Ryder said he had never heard of Land, Air, Water Aotearoa (LAWA) until Wednesday and divers were untrusting of what local authorities were reporting.
According to MPI, so far there had been no reports of people getting sick from contaminated kaimoana.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
