The toxic waste sits in drums on the Ruakaka property
Photo: RNZ / Claire Eastham-Farrelly
The waste, which has sat at a property in Ruakaka for three years, includes a range of chemicals, some of which are flammable and some which are toxic to aquatic life.
The first stage of the clean up is expected to cost $3 million.
The waste is 110 metres away from electricity lines which power the oil refinery at Marsden Point and 80m from the pipeline which carries petrol, diesel and jet fuel to Auckland.
The township of Ruakaka is 2km away.
Following the two-year-long first stage of the clean up, a second stage, involving testing the soil for contamination and remediating the site, will be needed. The cost of this has yet to be estimated.