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This includes oiled wildlife contingency planning and personnel development.
In New Zealand
We are always working to increase New Zealand’s preparedness and response to oiled wildlife events.
What preparedness means
Being prepared means:
- having a team of trained responders from border to border
- pre-staged equipment and supplies around the country
- specialised mobile facilities ready to deploy
- a plan to bring it all together.
This includes protocols for capture, transportation and care developed specifically for the wildlife found in our country.
Responders and training
Wildbase coordinates and trains New Zealand’s National Oiled Wildlife Response team. The team has more than 70 responders, based around the country from Kerikeri in the north to Invercargill in the south, and the Chatham Islands.
The response team includes:
- specialised wildlife ecologists
- veterinarians
- wildlife rehabilitators
- planners
- logistics
- human resources
- marine mammal and remote location responders.
Become a response volunteer
Volunteers are crucial to an oiled wildlife response during a spill.
Are you:
- aged 18 or over?
- strong, fit, and healthy?
- able to work 8 to 10 hour shifts per day, where you are standing and moving much of the time?
- available to work for two weeks on a roster of five days on / two days off, or similar?
Do you have:
- a high hygiene standard?
- the ability to work in environments with animals and everything that goes with them (faeces, fishy food, smell and water)?
- access to a computer to do an induction course?
- previous animal handling experience or skills (not essential).
If a spill occurs in the area where you live, and you can answer "yes" to the above questions, get in contact with the oil spill information line at the time of the spill and register your interest to help.
Find out more information about helping at an oil spill
If you are selected to help, you will be asked to do a two to three hour online oiled wildlife induction and safety course.
There are also many other positions that need filling, from cleaners to food preparation, transport coordinators and office staff.
Response training
Along with our internationally recognised training courses, we train and exercise our New Zealand Regional Responders through:
- annual workshops
- regional exercises
- specialised courses.
See our latest newsletters for more information about recent exercises and workshops.
Response equipment and facilities
Wildbase, in conjunction with Maritime New Zealand, maintains caches of specialised equipment and supplies throughout the country.
This is to make sure first responders can hit the ground running as soon as a spill occurs. A timely response is essential in an oiled wildlife response, as wasted time can mean wildlife lives are lost.
We have supplies in regional council areas, as well as a large stockpile of equipment that can be quickly transported and assembled for:
- wildlife recovery
- field stabilisation
- a primary care facility for care, cleaning, conditioning, and release of a variety of species nearly anywhere in New Zealand.
Along with this mobile equipment, Wildbase Oiled Wildlife Response has:
- a dedicated oiled wildlife response facility at Massey University
- use of Wildbase Hospital
- access to the Wildbase Recovery Centre
International preparedness
Wildbase works internationally with:
- the oil and gas industry
- global oil spill response organisations
- international oiled wildlife response agencies
- government and non-government organisation (NGO) groups to help with the development and delivery of training, oiled wildlife response plans and advice.
Advice includes expertise on:
- personnel
- response equipment
- response facilities
- preparation of contingency plans.
Planning and training
We have developed regional plans and provided regional specific training courses throughout Asia-Pacific.
Wildbase Oiled Wildlife Response is currently the only member organisation from the Asia-Pacific region within the Global Oiled Wildlife Response Services (GOWRS).
This is a group established to develop and improve oiled wildlife response capabilities and techniques throughout the world.
Watch the Global Oiled Wildlife Response Service Introduction (5 mins 23 secs)
GOWRS collaborated in the creation of the IPIECA key principles for the protection care and rehabilitation of oiled wildlife.