Black residue seen along Pāpāmoa Beach this week is not oil, or ash from Whakaari/White Island, according to Bay of Plenty Regional Council.

“Bay of Plenty Regional Council staff have completed an inspection and concluded that it was not oil on the beach,” says BOPRC compliance team leader Trudy Richards.

Pāpāmoa resident Anne Tapper went for a walk along Pāpāmoa Beach near Simpson Road at 10am on Monday morning and saw black residue stretching in both directions along the sand.

“I touched it, and it felt a bit oily, but I wasn’t sure if it was oil,” she says.

“It’s widespread right along the beach and it wasn’t there on Sunday.

“It washed up overnight.”

The black substance on Papamoa Beach earlier this week. Photo: Anne Tapper.

The Bay of Plenty experienced stormy weather overnight on Sunday night with debris, slips and tree damage in the region.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council staff went to check the residue to see if it was oil or ash. Volcanic activity has increased on Whakaari recently, with some flights being cancelled today due to ash being emitted into flight paths around the Bay of Plenty.

“This was a natural occurrence where the wave action has eroded the top layer of sand below the tide mark, exposing the ‘black sand’ below, which contains decomposing organic matter natural to the beach environment,” says Trudy Richards.