Mairangi Creek in Auckland’s North Shore was engulfed by three-metre high bubbles on Sunday afternoon.
By Monday, the foam was being swept up by wind gusts with “chunks of bubbles blowing all over the neighbourhood”, a local resident said.
The resident, who did want to be named for fear of being pranked, said the bubbles have staying power.
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Foam appeared in Mairangi Creek on Auckland’s North Shore on Sunday afternoon.
“The foam is lower now. I can see the water, but there are still bubbles everywhere. Anywhere with ripples or a current – you can still see it building,” she said.
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The resident believes someone purposely polluted the waterway.
“This isn’t just someone dumping a bit of stuff in the river. This is massive. The bubbles were about three and a half metres high.
“Somewhere upstream, someone must have put a lot of something in the water,” she said.
The resident said the foam was dissipating by early Monday afternoon, with bubbles still on the creek’s surface.
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Hibiscus and Bays local board member Julia Parfitt said incidents like this are not unheard of during the school break.
“We get things like this sometimes in school holidays with children or other people putting dye and detergent in waterways, not realising that it can affect the pH level of the waterway and lead to the destruction of wildlife in the waterways.
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Mairangi Creek flows into the sea.
“Sometimes people don’t think through the consequences of what they’re doing,” she said.
The bubbles started in Hythe Terrace and made their way down Sidmouth St to Mairangi Bay, according to Auckland Council spokesperson Paul Northover.
All up, the foam travelled more than a kilometre to reach the beach.
Northover said the creek water has been tested and no abnormal results found.
“Our on-call pollution officer attended the site and extensive efforts were made to locate the original source of the foam. However, the source could not be found,” he said.
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The bubbles were at their peak on Sunday.
“We also asked residents to inform the council if they saw any signs of wildlife being affected; there have been no reports to date. As such, we do not expect any lasting effects from the incident.”
Northover said Auckland Council is investigating the source of the bubbles.
“While the cause of the foam has not yet been established, we would ask people to be mindful and remind them to not put any foreign substances into our waterbodies as they could have an adverse effect on our ecosystems.”
