The first oil washed up onto the beach at Mt Maunganui five days after the container ship, Rena, ran aground the Astrolab Reef, about 20km from Tauranga on Oct 5. Greenpeace New Zealand is campaigning against deep sea oil drilling off New Zealand's coasts, on the basis that such activity could well lead to a far worse spill than that from the Rena. The setting up of the final frontiers in oil exploration will also only make the climate crisis worse.