In this image taken from a footage shot by AuBC/CH7/CH9 as pool and distributed via APTN, white smoke billows from an oil rig 2 with a slick of oil off northwest coast in Australia, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2009. A plane loaded with chemical dispersants rushed Saturday toward a slick spilling from an oil rig in remote waters off Australia's northwest coast. (AP Photo / AuBC / CH7 / CH9, POOL via APTN)

By Phil Mercer, Sydney, 20 October 2009 Australia’s worst oil slick since the mid-1980s is now tainting Indonesian waters. Fishermen in West Timor say contaminated fish are making villagers ill. Oil began leaking two months ago, following an accident on the West Atlas drilling platform, which lies about 200 kilometers off the coast of Western Australia. Since then, the millions of liters of oil have poured into the water, prompting concerns for the health of endangered turtles as well as whales and dolphins. Indonesian fishermen say the slick has killed of thousands of fish and is causing illness among villagers who have eaten tainted seafood. Three attempts to plug the leak on the rig, which is owned by a Thailand company, have failed. The Conservative opposition’s environment spokesman Greg Hunt says the accident has been a calamity for the fishing industry and the fragile marine ecosystem. “This is a deep ocean tragedy. It is affecting marine life,” Hunt said. “There can be no doubt that that is the case and what we are hearing from reports from the fishing community both in Australia and overseas is that there are real effects on marine life.” …

Australia Oil Spill Spreads Contamination to Indonesia