Battling the spill: AMSA workers use booms to trap oil leaing from the blown uot wellbore at Montara
- Montara relief well under way
- Aussie government pledges probe into Montara leak
- West Triton poised to plug Montara
- West Triton nears Montara
- APPEA backs bill to tackle Montara spill
- PTTEP battling slick at Montara
- West Triton tow line snaps
- Montara spill prompts Canberra move
- West Triton on the move again
- Pipelay continues at Montara
- Java Constructor leaves Montara
- PTTEP works on Montara clean-up
- West Triton on its way to Montara
- Glitch delays West Triton sailaway
- Relief well for slick at Montara
- Rudd brands Montara slick 'appalling'
- Delay hits Montara salvage work
- PTTEP prepares to spray Montara
- Leak forced evacuation from West Atlas
- Montara leak 'may take months to plug'
Montara legal threat 'premature'
Threats of legal action by commercial fisherman for compensation over the oil spill at the Montara oil project were premature until claims of harm to wildlife could be confirmed, the boss of Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA) said today.
Kimberley fishermen have warned they will sue Montara operator PTTEP if the crude oil leaking into the Timor Sea from Montara has damaged the Northern Demersal Scalefish fishery, a report in the Australian newspaper said.
The report added that they have also said they would take action against the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) if it was found the dispersants used to break up the spill were hurting marine life.
Fishermen have reported finding sea snakes and turtles covered in an oily substance in the area around the wellhead platform, which lies about 250 kilometres off the Western Australia coast.
However, APPEA boss Belinda Robinson said any claims needed to be confirmed.
"At the moment, we're not aware of any incidents of the fishery being affected by the oil spill," she told the Australian.
She said it was too early to talk of legal action.
"I think it's premature. At this stage, the industry's not aware of any impact on fisheries, so it seems a little early to be making claims of compensation."
The seven commercial fishing boats that operate in the fishery come from Broome, Darwin and Port Hedland and catch mainly red emperor, goldband and other coral trout and cod, in a fishery worth A$8 million (US$6.9 million) a year, the newspaper said.
Kimberley Professional Fisherman's Association secretary Bob Masters told the Asutralian the spill was in the middle of the northern sector of the fishery.
Thai player PTTEP had said it would pay AMSA for clean-up costs and nothing else.
"What worries me there is if there is more damage than the clean-up, potential future damages to fish stocks and the marine environment which would have a very large effect on our income," Masters told the newspaper.
"Then there's the potential damage to our brand of the pristine, clean Kimberley fish from the area."
The federal environment department is working with its WA counterpart to monitor the potential effects of the spill on wildlife.
It said five birds had so far been confirmed as affected by oil and treated at Ashmore Island.
A PTTEP spokesman told UpstreamOnline the company agreed with Robinson's statement, adding he did not wish to comment further.
- All of Upstream's coverage of the Montara blowout and spill is available in the related articles section to the right of this story.