Pilot Bay is closed for swimming today due to a possible wastewater contamination.

Tauranga City Council has issued a notice saying the beach is closed and water quality tests are due tomorrow.

Possible wastewater contamination has seen the closure of Pilot Bay today. Photo: Bruce Barnard.

'Health warning signs are being put up along Pilot Bay,” says a Tauranga City Council communications spokesperson.

'The reason for the closure is that it appears a ship may have pumped wastewater into the harbour early this morning."

The incident happened at about 5am when a ship at the Port of Tauranga was taking on water into its wastewater tanks and bilge pumps were pumping into the harbour.

"We are still unsure about how much wastewater potentially affected the harbour. Timing coincides with the outgoing tide," says the council.

Water quality testing has been taken along Pilot Bay, Sandy bay and Harbour Bridge Marina.

Pilot Bay beach is closed to swimming as a precautionary measure and the closure will be reviewed as more details come to hand.

'Precise details about how much wastewater entered the harbour are still unclear, so our Pollution Prevention team is liaising closely with the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.”

The Bay of Plenty Regional Council was informed of a commercial fishing vessel taking on water in the Tauranga Harbour this morning.

A small quantity of fuel was sighted in the water and booms were immediately deployed, which council say are working effectively.

The harbourmaster has been on site this morning, along with staff from Maritime New Zealand and Tauranga City Council.

"Staff will continue to assess the situation. The vessel tank that appears to be the problem, which contained the vessel's sewage, is being emptied into a sucker truck," says a statement from the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.