00:01These pelicans have been given a second chance at life. They're among three that have been
00:06released today. After spending weeks in rehabilitation, they were found covered in
00:11oil following a spill in the port of Brisbane earlier this month. The pelicans were released
00:16near where they were found at Morningside in Brisbane's east. Another four are still
00:21undergoing rehabilitation at the Australia Zoo and also Corrumbin Wildlife Sanctuary on the Gold Coast.
00:28We actually loosen the oil up with lighter grade non-toxic oils and sometimes we use things like
00:34canola oil or olive oil and then basically put it through a wash process using just household
00:40dishwashing detergents. The birds were rescued earlier this month after 7,000 litres of heavy
00:46fuel oil leaked from an international container ship into the port of Brisbane. The spill occurred
00:52when the container ship was refuelling, delaying other ships departure from the port for several
00:57days. We were able to minimise the impacts on the port of Brisbane quite substantially,
01:02so that was very good. There were lots of ships that were affected, we were able to shuffle
01:07those around on a risk based approach, make sure the port kept running even though there
01:12were some interruptions. Their capture was no mean feat. In a lot of ways it's largely about
01:17enticing animals to get close using food like fish, fresh fish, and then looking at either
01:23a netting type opportunity or similar to recover the animal safely. There was also the time
01:29pressure of rescuing the birds before it was too late. They've become critical in terms of
01:34the animal being able to just eat and drink and survive normally. Maritime Safety Queensland
01:39is still investigating whether this was mechanical or human error and what penalties may apply.
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