Aww... I think people are much more interested on other news concerning the government, financial crisis and ugh, celebrities??

It's so sad to know that nobody cares for this. :( As a matter of fact this could put us in danger too indirectly and not just the marine which will be badly hurt.

The oil spill started on August 21, 2009 when the West Atlas mobile rig in Montara oil field along Timor Sea off the northern coast of western part of Australia began leaking.

Here's a small timeline on how far the oil spill spread through the past few months:

- August 24, 2009 - oil spill was said that it had reach 14km long and 30 metres wide.
- September 3, 2009 - the oil spill is starting to move closer to the west Australian coast, about 170 kilometres from where it originated.
- October 30, 2009 - the spill now has almost reached Indonesian territory but haven't touched the shores YET. :(

This could be the worst worst oil spill that ever happened. Though there are clean up response already, it is evident in some affected areas that water starts to be discolored. Many fishes and other marine life such as corals could die because of this occurrence. Not just that, this could also have long time effects for our marine life. :(

I hope the people involved will start working on this before it's too late. :( Before we, humans are being affected by it.

The Montara oil Spill has been regarded as one of Australia's worst oil spills ever .. ..
dunno why media isn't hiking such a strong and important issue as they normally do in other "celebrity" stories….
This is known to be started with a slick releasing from the West Atlas Mobile rig following oil leak on 21st August,2009 and till date continues to float in the Montara oil Spill, Timor Sea,off the Northen Coast of Australia after the 4 unsuccessful attempts to intercept the leak by The PTTEP Australasia( they are operating the oil rig ) and have arranged boats spraying chemicals to help disperse the slick and stop its spread. 
By August 29 the slick was estimated at 180km at a minimum, measured east to west.
By September 3, 2009, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) reported that the slick was 170 kilometres from the coast of Western Australia, and moving closer to the shore and around the same time even the fishers observed sick and dying marine life, and an absence of birds in the spill area.
The biologists have confirmed that the effects of this spill could be disastrous for the marine life having toxic effects on the marine algae,invertebrates & even birds. Sad to know that.....
The WWF( World Wildlife Fund ) has observed a waxy residue from the oil spill and expressed a concern for the Dolphins & other marine life.
NGO's in Indonesia expressed concern about the oil spills effects on the Indonesian environment and traditional fishing grounds as the oil spill drifted towards the islands of Timor and Sumba.
I wonder whether only " concerns " from all these NGO's are going to help saving marine life…
And now that even the fishermen have observed dying marine life in the spill area ..wat's going to happen in near future to the flora and fauna of the surrounding vicinity and to US !!!! As even we are directly or indirectly related to it…..
Just hope that the PTTEP makes one more and a successful attempt thereby relieving everyone….
Thanks.

This spill is still smaller than several other well known oil spills (roughly 1/3 the size of the Exxon Valdez spill at the moment). Assuming it's successfully capped relatively soon, much of the potential environmental damage should be mitigated. However, if what we've learned from the Exxon Valdez spill is any indicator, significant amounts of dead wildlife should be seen in the short term, if "have toxic effects on birds, marine invertebrates, coral and marine algae" is an accurate description. Wildlife casualties will likely increase if/when this oil slick reaches the shoreline.

In the long term, wildlife should recover. It may take several decades for natural processes to break down the oil to the point where it's no longer significantly toxic.

I imagine this event won't become newsworthy until the oil reaches the shoreline. Once there's pictures and videos of dead birds on the beach, it'll be a more media friendly story.

The WWF today claimed a wide range of marine wildlife - including dolphins, sea birds and two species of turtle - are under threat from the slick caused by the Montara blow-out, off Australia’s remote Kimberley coast.

The claims came after the conservation group issued a report compiled by consultants Applied Energy Solutions following an expedition to the affected area in the Timor Sea.

The WWF said dolphins, migratory sea birds and sea snakes were found in abundance in the area, as well as two species of marine turtle. The group added many of these species were recorded swimming through the oil-affected area.

The slick started on 21 August, when a well blew out at the Montara oilfield.

Three attempts by Montara's Thailand-based operator PTTEP to plug the leaking well with heavy mud have failed. A fourth attempt to plug the well will be made this weekend.

A PTTEP spokesman declined to comment on the WWF report, saying it needed more time to assess the study's findings.

He added it was also waiting on the results of a further studies being carried out by the federal Department of the Environment. The department issued a report yesterday saying the spill had had no environmental impact.

However, the Curtin University scientists who carried out tests used in that report claimed that those tests - carried out on just four frozen fish - may not be a comprehensive indicator of the spill's environmental impact.

Commenting on today's report, WWF Australia's director of conservation, Dr Gilly Llewellyn said: "We recorded hundreds of dolphins and sea birds in the oil slick area, as well as sea snakes and threatened hawksbill and flatback turtles.

"It's a stark contrast to comments made this week by the Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA) that claimed our survey found no evidence of harm to marine life."

On Wednesday, PTTEP reported high levels of mortality among oil-affected seabirds.

"Clearly, wildlife is dying and hundreds if not thousands of dolphins, seabirds and sea snakes are being exposed to toxic oil," Llewellyn said.

"The critical issue is the long-term impact of this slick on a rich marine ecosystem, taking into consideration the magnitude, extent and duration of the event," she added.

"We know that oil can be a slow and silent killer. Impacts from the Exxon Valdez disaster are still being seen 20 years later, so we can expect this environmental disaster will continue to unfold for years to come."

The 1989 ExxonValdez spill saw 40 million litres of crude choke Alaska's Prince William Sound.

WWF is aware of a second sea-based survey team that has been to the area and collected data on the spill's impact on marine life and has called for all evidence and observations to be made publically available.

"The public needs to have all available information concerning what has been observed and reported, including findings from Ashmore Reef, and from the vessels and platforms in the area," Llewellyn said.

As of 22 October, two months after the accident, the blown out well bore is still leaking.

Estimates for the amount of oil, gas and condensate leaking from the well have been put at almost 500,000 litres - 3145 barrels - to date.

PTTEP says just 300 to 400 barrels of oil per day is leaking from the damaged well bore, but the Department of Resources, Energy & Tourism yesterday told a Senate committee it believed up to 2000 bpd is being pumped into the sea.

Australia's federal Resources Ministry has said it believes PTTEP's estimates, adding that the higher estimate is based on flows if the well was in full production.

Official estimates of the size of the slick from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) indicate that it is about 6000 square kilometres (25 x 70 nautical miles) but the expedition found oil sheen at distances beyond 70 nautical miles from the wellhead platform.

Satellite images from 24 September indicate that the leak could have covered between 25,000 square kilometres and 10,000 square kilometres.

With oil continuing to leak since then the footprint of the slick can only have grown, WWF added.

Meanwhile federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation he is confident everything possible is being done to stop the oil leak.

"The fact of the matter is, it's a fiendishly difficult exercise - a little bit like threading the needle - to try to get this oil spill stopped," he said.

"I very much hope that it will be on this occasion. I'm concerned about it, but we've put a lot of measures in place not only to monitor it, but to make sure that any wildlife that's affected is properly treated."