Environmental incidents

We respond to serious environmental incidents affecting our region's air, water, and land. We investigate and take appropriate enforcement action when a breach of environmental law is confirmed.

Here's how you can report an environmental incident.

On this page, you will see the most up-to-date information we can provide for reported incidents in which the public has been advised to avoid a particular area.

With incidents we report through our Facebook page, we often get asked for more information, like the cause of the event or what will happen following our initial response. We know it can be frustrating, but often, we can’t provide further information as we investigate and collect evidence. You can read more about our investigation process in the frequently asked questions section below.

Date of incident	Incident type	Location/information	Status
17/07/2026	Discharge to a waterway	Treated wastewater discharge in Bluff	Invercargill City Council contractors will be fixing the issue on Monday, and signage has been erected in the area.
23/09/2024	Effluent discharge	Effluent discharge from wagyu operation in Tokanui	01/07/2026 Mr Wright was sentenced in the Invercargill District Court to 12 months’ home detention after being convicted of 35 charges arising from the unlawful operation of his large-scale wagyu beef feedpads.
13/05/2026	Discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has identified a discharge into the Fenham Creek, a tributary of the Orauea River, near Otautau-Tuatapere Road and staff are on site. We recommend that people and animals avoid contact with the creek. As with all incidents, it is being investigated, and we will provide further information if and when we are able to do so.	Under investigation.
13/05/2026	Discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has been notified of a discharge into the Winton Stream, downstream of State Highway 96. Staff are at the site this morning, tracking the source of the discharge.	Under investigation. Working to confirm source of discharge with SDC. Booms have been deployed and will be removed when discharge has eased.
06/05/2026	Discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has been notified of a discharge into the Otepuni Stream, between Rockdale Road and Inglewood Road and it’s visible downstream. Booms have been deployed and our team are working with Invercargill City Council to track the source of discharge.	Under investigation. Working to confirm source of discharge with ICC, booms will be removed when discharge has eased.
06/05/2026	Discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has been notified of a discharge into the Hedgehope Stream, South of Rakahouka-Hedgehope Road We recommend that people and animals avoid contact with the Hedgehope Stream particularly in that area. As with all incidents, it will be investigated to determine any further action required, and we will provide further information if and when we are able to do so.	Under investigation.
29/03/2026	Discharge to a waterway	A concerned community member notified our compliance team, via our pollution hotline, of a discharge into the Mataura River. Our team visited the site this morning to investigate. The road on the bridge was recently resealed, and due to rainfall over the weekend, there is some runoff from the new seal. At this stage, we don’t know how much of the product has made it to the river, but we anticipate that with the high flows, anything that has made it to the river will have washed through quickly. As part of our investigation, we have collected samples and expect the results back next week. In the meantime, we recommend that people and animals avoid contact with the water in the area, including collecting kai. We will share more information once the test results are available.	Advice given to contractor. Water samples came back negative. No further action.
26/03/2026	Agricultural effluent discharge	Our compliance team was been notified of an effluent spill into an unnamed tributary of the Te Tipua Stream. The spill was quickly contained and it is believed to be a small volume of effluent.	A concealed effluent pipe was broken but quickly sealed. Small amount of effluent escaped but contained. No further action.
16/02/2026	Smoke- outdoor burning	Our compliance team was called out by Fire and Emergency New Zealand to a structure fire in Rosedale, Invercargill thought to contain chemicals.	Abatement notice was served for removal of illegal burnt material. Offending party received an infringement notice.
10/02/2026	Maritime incident	Environment Southland has been informed by the Rescue Coordination Centre NZ (RCCNZ) that a 4.3m vessel ran aground in the South Fiord of Lake Te Anau. A Southern Lakes Helicopter responded at 5.45am this morning, airlifting the sole occupant to Te Anau. There is no report of any fuel spill or risk that the vessel poses a navigation safety hazard. The boat owner is liaising with their insurance company over its removal. Our harbourmaster team has commenced an investigation and will continue to monitor and support the response.	11/02/26: The vessel was safely salvaged by a local commercial operator with no environmental impact.
9/02/2026	Silage leachate discharge	Our compliance team has been notified of a silage leachate discharge into an unnamed tributary of the Makarewa River.	Under investigation.
9/02/2026	Sewage discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has been alerted by Invercargill City Council to a sewage discharge in the Waihōpai River.	Discharge stopped at 11.15am 9/02/2026. No further investigation required.
25/01/2026	Possible effluent spill into the Waianiwa Stream	On Sunday, we responded to a possible effluent spill into the Waianiwa Stream, which sadly led to eel deaths. The discharge happened a few days earlier and we haven’t been able to locate the source, Due to the recent heavy rain, we don’t expect to see an impact on the current water quality.	We will continue monitoring the area.
22/01/2026	Sewage discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has been alerted by Invercargill City Council to a small sewage discharge overflow into a stormwater system that flows to the Otepuni Stream.	23/01/2026: The overflow has been resolved.
12/12/2025	Effluent discharge to a waterway.	Our compliance team has been notified of an effluent discharge into an unnamed tributary to the Waimatuku Mouth. We recommend that people and animals avoid contact with the Waimatuku stream in the Isla Bank area.	15/12/2025: An abatement notice has been issued and has been referred for enforcement consideration.
7/11/2025	Effluent discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has been notified of an effluent discharge into an unnamed tributary of the Waihōpai River. We recommend that people and animals avoid contact with the Waihōpai River and waterways in the Morton Mains area.	11/11/2025: The discharge has been contained, and the investigation is ongoing.
21/10/2025	Sewage discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has been alerted by Invercargill City Council to a sewer blockage and overflow near a stormwater drain near Craig Street in Invercargill, which has the potential to cause sewage to enter the Waihōpai River.	23/10/2025: Incident has been closed with no further action. Site clean up was undertaken and there was no discharge to water.
07/10/2025	Discharge to a waterway	A discharge to the Hedgehope Stream was identified during a monitoring event.	10/10/2025: Incident has been referred for further investigation
02/10/2025	Sewage discharge to a waterway	Our compliance team has been alerted by Invercargill City Council (ICC) to a sewage discharge through a stormwater drain. Location: New River Estuary/Waihopai River between Stead Street and Bond Row. Investigation: A site inspection was completed which confirmed ICC had completed clean-up of the area following a sewerage blockage that led to sewage entering a stormwater sump.	02/10/2025: The incident is closed with a cost recovery outcome.

What happens once an environmental incident is reported?

When we receive your complaint, we’ll ask for your name and contact details so we can get in touch if we need any more information. We’ll always respect your privacy and handle any personal information you chose to provide with strict confidentiality.

Once you’ve provided as much information as you can about the breach, we will:

Investigate – this may include a site inspection, sampling, measurement, photographing and interviewing people.
Act – the most appropriate course of action will be taken based on the circumstances.

Options that could be taken include:

No further action required
Educational advice
A Letter of direction
Abatement notice
Formal warning
Infringement notice
Or, in the most serious cases, prosecution

What happens when something is under investigation?

We know it can be frustrating when you see and hear about environmental incidents, and we can’t answer your questions about the cause of the incident or what action will be taken following our investigation.

We can't provide more information because it’s a pretty formal process when an investigation is underway, and we have many rules and processes to follow.

We need to collect evidence, statements and expert advice and build a case just as the Police or other agencies would. We can’t release information as we do this, as it could jeopardise the integrity of any investigation and may not then result in the appropriate outcome.

What environmental incidents does Environment Southland respond to?

Air
Objectionable odours
Unlawful outdoor burning
Unlawful agrichemical application
Other unlawful discharges to air
Nuisance smoke in residential areas

Water
Unlawful discharges to streams, rivers, lakes and coastal marine areas
Rubbish dumped or 'fly tipped'
Chemical or oil spills
Sediment from unlawful activity
Stock in waterways
Effluent discharge to water
Unlawful structures in the water
Unlawful water takes, uses, damning and diversion

Land
Unauthorised earthworks, vegetation clearance or excavations
Unlawful disturbance to wetlands
Unlawful effluent discharge to land
Unapproved and unlawful large-scale dump sites
Other unlawful discharges and spills