ACTION for Environment has accused East by West ferries of using excessive amounts of detergent, thus polluting the harbour, affecting the Little Blue Penguins and the marine environment. Managing director Jeremy Ward says the allegations make his blood boil, as does a letter from the Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC).
In their December newsletter, the Action for Environment group detailed its concerns. They reported froth and a continuous stream of detergent foam in the harbour near the East by West boats at Queens Wharf and notified East by West’s use of detergent as the problem to the GWRC in June 2010. The GWRC Environmental department wrote to the company and directors on August 16.
Action for Environment is a not-for-profit conservation group dedicated to the environmental preservation of the city. Their December newsletter, edited by Chairman David Lee, made public their concerns.
There are not only East by West boats in the harbour, Ward points out, but also Interislander ferries, Bluebridge ferries, vessels docked at CentrePort, cement ships, cruise ships, fishing boats, and many more ships in the marinas. Boats come in and out of Wellington Harbour each day.
“We are a company that for the past 22 years has taken our environmental responsibilities very seriously,” Ward says. Responding to the GWRC, he describes East by West’s commitment to be environmentally conscious. The East by West crew, as per usual, used 25-50mls of biodegradable detergent. “It is unfeasible such a trail, if it existed, could be attributed to our cleaning routine,” Ward says.
The environmental group blamed the ferry company for a long stream of froth stretching from Queens Wharf all the way to Taranaki Street Wharf.
Ward, on another occasion, has also observed trails of bubbles from the Kumutoto outlet just past the East by West offices that went straight past Queens Wharf on its way to Taranaki Street Wharf. Officials from Wellington Waterfront also witnessed this. “It’s visible on a calm day, especially after heavy rains, with a slight northerly breeze,” Ward explains, “which is why the froth heads down the wharfs in a southerly direction.”
East by West has talked to the Harbours Department of the Regional Council. They are familiar with their present cleaning routines and did not appear to have any concerns.
Editor Lee, from Action for the Environment, says: “We do what we can to stop pollution in the harbour.” Ships, companies and water waste outlets are all contributing to this collective problem.
The Greater Wellington Council is investigating the matter. Ward, despite replying within a week to the Greater Wellington Council’s letter of August 16, 2010, has had no response. He says: “I look forward to this whole issue being raised in public.”