Scores of people will pour in to Picton early next month as Maritime New Zealand undertakes its largest ever maritime exercise.

The type of exercise will remain a mystery until the emergency is declared but it's tempting to take a guess from its title Exercise Hard Rock.

It will definitely involve an oil spill, but beyond that Maritime NZ staff are remaining mum about the circumstances leading up to a spill.

Maritime NZ communications adviser Steve Corbett said the exercise would cost over $100,000, most of it for travel, accommodation and moving of equipment.

Exercise Hard Rock will be split over the two locations of Wellington and Picton and will involve more than 100 local government, industry and Maritime NZ staff.

Mr Corbett said it would reflect the authority's wider role and the mock scenario would for the first time include security and search and rescue components as well as a major oil spill.

Exercise Hard Rock will take place from May 1 to May 5, with oil recovery vessels deployed at some stage during the exercise. The oil recovery vessel, Kuaka, will go into the water in Wellington and Tukuperu in Picton.

Other oil spill response equipment such as floating booms and oil recovery skimmers will also be used.

Karyn van Wijngaarden, the daughter of Marlborough harbourmaster Alex van Wijngaarden, launched the Tukuperu in Picton last November. It is permanently based in Picton ready for use in any oil spill emergency.

Mr van Wijngaarden, who is an on-scene commander for Maritime NZ's oil spill response team, will be closely involved in the exercise.

Mr Corbett said the Rescue Coordination Centre NZ in Avalon would control Exercise Hard Rock. The scenario would be unveiled to the players who will then have to react as they would in a real life incident.

Maritime NZ is legally required to hold a national oil spill exercise every four years with the last one, Exercise Clean Seas taking place at Tauranga in October 2000.


SOURCE: By DEE WILSON