Eels die in filthy stream

NEIL DUDDY

A REAL TRAGEDY: Jaden Smith, left, and Paul Woodard are mourning the loss of hundreds of eels killed by pollution in the Puhinui Stream.

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Hundreds of eels, some as old as 50, have died in a devastating pollution spill in the Puhinui Stream last week.

Authorities are investigating but are yet to determine what killed them.

Wai Care Manukau co-ordinator Andrew Jenks says it is one of the worst pollution events he's heard of.

"It's just an absolute disaster for that stream to lose all those eels."

Wai Care is a community and school-based water monitoring programme, supported by councils throughout the Auckland region.

Its Manukau arm has been looking after the Puhinui Stream.

Local schoolchildren visit the stream frequently and have been monitoring it as part of the Wai Care programme.

Mr Jenks says most people in the community are doing a good job of disposing of their waste properly. He is concerned that hard work to keep the stream safe may have been ruined.

"It just takes one small act to undo a huge amount of benefit people have been putting in over the years."

Thirteen-year-old Jaden Smith discovered the dead eels last Wednesday and alerted other locals, who rang the Manukau City Council and Wai Care.

Jaden helped Wai Care contractor Paul Woodard with the clean-up, the pair focusing on a 1km area near Liverpool and Glasgow Aves.

In just two days they collected 500 dead eels. Mr Woodard estimates there could be hundreds more.

"It's a tragedy. I just can't believe it," he says.

Many of the dead eels were found on the banks of the stream where they had tried to escape.

Polly Wells, whose house backs on to the stream, has been feeding the eels every day after work for years and was particularly fond of one regular visitor.

The scale of the pollution in the stream has distressed her. "Never ever have I seen anything like that. Someone has to be made responsible."

Auckland Regional Council pollution response manager Nigel Clarke says water samples tested have shown nothing out of the ordinary. The council will also investigate whether the pollution came from a local business. Pollution hotline: 3773107.

- © Fairfax NZ News