Mystery debris that closed Sydney's Coogee beach confirmed to be thousands of
'tar balls'
==============================================================================

Thousands of black golf ball-sized pieces of debris that washed up on the sand
and forced the closure of two Sydney beaches have been confirmed as "tar
balls".

Coogee beach was closed on Tuesday and Gordons Bay beach was closed on
Wednesday with beachgoers warned not to touch or go near the "mysterious
black, ball-shaped debris".

Randwick council said on Wednesday evening that "preliminary test results ...
show the material is a hydrocarbon-based pollutant which is consistent with
the makeup of tar balls".

Hydrocarbons are the chief components of petroleum-based products.

A potential oil slick was spotted off the coast on Wednesday morning, a day
after the ball-shaped debris was first found on Coogee beach.

Both Coogee and Gordons Bay beaches remained closed with clean-up efforts
under way to safely remove and dispose of the material, the council said.

Council environmental officers had collected samples from Coogee on Tuesday
and sent them for testing.

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The incident was reported to the Environment Protection Authority and
Beachwatch New South Wales.

The council had initially speculated the then unknown material could be "tar
balls" formed when oil comes into contact with debris and water - usually as a
result of oil spills or seepage.

Council jetskis spotted a suspected oil slick out at sea on Wednesday morning,
the Randwick council mayor, Dylan Parker, said. However, it was not yet
confirmed.

A dead seagull coated in black floated past the Coogee local Jamie O'Donnell
when he was surfing off Gordons Bay on Wednesday morning. "That was the only
sign of the oil slick we saw," he said.

The Port Authority of NSW said no oil spills had been reported by vessels.

"It is the responsibility of all ships to report any spills to the relevant
authorities including the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, Transport for
NSW and Port Authority," it said in a statement.

The state environment minister, Penny Sharpe, said earlier on Wednesday that
the EPA was working with other government agencies and forensic scientists to
identify exactly what the balls were, the source of the contamination and what
risks it presented.

Parker said debris balls were also spotted on Wedding Cake Island about 1km
off Coogee beach.

"We have engaged an expert occupational hygienist and a specialist waste
removal contractor who are currently systematically removing the debris from
the beaches in accordance with an agreed safe work method statement developed
with the NSW EPA," the mayor said on Wednesday. "This process will likely
continue tomorrow."

Coogee beach was closed with yellow barricades, orange flags and council
signage reading "work in progress" on Wednesday morning. About 20 staff in hi-
vis worked along the length of the beach.

The debris balls were picked up one at a time by staff. The balls were placed
in mounds above the high-tide mark and covered with sand to avoid them being
washed away.

A local barista said Coogee beach was different from a normal morning when
"people do laps around the pool or are just out walking". "Usually you see
plenty of people," he said.

Jennifer, who works at Coogee Express convenience store, said she anticipated
business would be quieter so long as the beach was closed. "I think next week
[it will] get better," she said on Wednesday.

Louise Morris, the oil and gas campaign manager at the Australian Marine
Conservation Society, said earlier on Wednesday: "If it is oil, we've got a
clean-up problem on our hands."

Morris said she suspected "something has happened offshore" and marine life
would be harmed.

"Tar balls are normally the result of some oil spill somewhere that has been
combined with debris, plastic, whatever it may be," Morris said.

"Small animals that live on the ocean floor, who are taking in sediment, are
going to start ingesting it. We are looking at birds and other animals that
get coated in oil [on the water's surface]. It affects their ability to fly,
to feed and to swim."

Randwick council posted on social media on Tuesday evening: "Coogee beach is
closed until further notice after council lifeguards this afternoon discovered
mysterious black, ball-shaped debris washed along the length of the beach."

Beachgoers were advised to avoid the beaches until further notice and not
touch the material while the clean-up and investigations continued.



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