Crusader spots Picton water pollution

work out where it was being discharged from, or whether it was the same source and substance on each occasion.

It seemed to show up after heavy rainfall, and appeared to come from a drain that led through all the industrial areas of Picton, Grogan said. ‘‘Potentially somewhere there’s a contaminant that’s leaking into the waterway,’’ Grogan said.

They were not convinced it was a hydrocarbon, or oil source, but it was ‘‘not an impossibility’’, he said.

They had used measures to curb the contamination in the past including a sorbent boom which soaked up oily substances, but that was variable in terms of its success, he said.

Grogan welcomed information from the public that may assist in an investigation.

Watson, originally from the West Coast, had been living in Marlborough for five years before beginning his rubbish tour of New Zealand in January 2019. He quit his job, bought a trailer, built a tiny house on top and hit the road.

‘‘I’ve basically spent my inheritance travelling around picking up other people’s crap.’’

He hoped to lead by example, in the hope that people might see the effort he was putting in and think twice before chucking rubbish out the window.

‘‘I’ve seen some pretty horrendous sights,’’ Watson said.

A public reserve turned fly tipping site in Northland’s Mangamuka district was particularly ‘‘heartbreaking’’, he said.

He estimated it would have taken six full trailer loads of rubbish to clear out the couches, tyres, appliances and junk ditched in the bush. Watson and a few residents pulled out about 500kg of rubbish from the site.

But his mission against the enormous tide of waste was halted by the coronavirus pandemic, prompting him to travel from Kaitaia down to Picton to ride out lockdown.

He had undertaken many collections while in Marlborough, ranging from the Wairau Bar to Rarangi Beach. ‘‘I see it, because I can’t unsee this stuff anymore.’’

Driving from Picton to Blenheim he saw chip packets, Mcdonald’s straws and an array of rubbish, and he was particularly concerned plastic was chopped up by roadside mowers.

‘‘Rubbish being disposed from vehicles, horrendous,’’ Watson said. ‘‘All of that stuff is getting cut up and it’s just going in the waterways.’’

Cigarette butts, bottle caps and the endless array of rubbish found in ditches on the side of the road, broke down into tiny pieces which ended up in the ocean, he said.

He planned to head back to the North Island to continue picking up rubbish around coastlines.

People had been supporting Watson by donating to his Givealittle page and contacting him through his Facebook page, Kiwis Clean Aotearoa.