Print view

Land and water pollution

Pollution response team

Report water pollution to the 24-hour Water Pollution Hotline 09 377 3107

Pollution response is a fundamental component of the ARC's strategy to control pollution, and the pollution response team play a vital role in preventing, investigating and mitigating water pollution within the Auckland region.

A pollution response officer at an oil spill

View large image

What does the pollution response team do?

  • Operate a region-wide 24-hour Water Pollution Hotline, the team respond to reports of domestic and industrial spills on land, in stormwater drains, in our streams, lakes, beaches and harbours.
  • Take enforcement action against those responsible for non-compliance with the Resource Management Act when appropriate.
  • Area focused pollution blitzes, targeting specific business areas to highlight and resolve pollution issues and educate company owners on good environmental practice.
  • Provide advice and education to individuals, schools or companies on general pollution issues.

The pollution response team don't deal with

Noise or illegal dumping of litter are dealt with by local or district councils . If you are having problems with your local water supply then contact your local water services network operator.

For ‘industrial or trade process' consents you will need to contact the pollution prevention team.

Responding to pollution

A polluted stream

View large image

Reports of pollution are received via the 24-hour Water Pollution Hotline 09 377 3107, with every call investigated by a pollution response officer. Since it's launch in 1987, calls to the hotline have risen from a few hundred to over 1500 a year.

All callers details are kept strictly confidential, and are never divulged to anyone outside of the hotline team.

If we find a pollution problem, we aim to:

  • stop any discharge immediately
  • ensure that residual pollutants are cleaned up as far as practicable
  • collect evidence of the pollution incident
  • advise the responsible party on appropriate actions to prevent the problem from reoccurring
  • ensure that the responsible party is adequately prepared to deal with future leaks or spills by having a Spill Response Plan
  • assess other activities/operations in order to identify any other problems that may be causing actual or potential water pollution
  • consider the legal liability of each person and/or company involved and potential enforcement options
  • recover all reasonable costs associated with each pollution event so that the region's ratepayers do not have to bear the cost of someone else's negligence - the polluter pays!

Pollution and the Law
It is illegal to cause water pollution - if you are unsure whether you have a pollution problem on your site, or if you require advice or educational material, please call a pollution response officer on 09 366 2000 for assistance.