The removal of a giant oil field in Indonesia is worrying

Indonesian and Australian environmental NGOs are protesting plans announced by the Australian government to dismantle the Northern Endeavor, a floating oil production, storage and offloading unit located in the Timor Sea, 155 kilometers off the coast of Indonesia and East Timor.

The Australian government describes the building on its website as an oil and gas company owned by Northern Endeavor “274 meters long, About 550 kilometers northwest of Darwin in the Timor Sea. Dissolved in 2020.

“Radioactive Materials”

Tea Jakarta Post Indonesian Accurate This includes activities such as disposal “Cleaning Liquids Containing Residues ‘Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials’, As well as towing the vessel a ‘International Destination’ Undisclosed”.

Daily contact, Despite its short distance from the coast of Indonesia and Timor, the islanders of this sea area were not consulted or informed, pointed out Fanny Tri Jambor, campaign manager for mining and energy issues at the Indonesian Forum for the Indonesian Environment (Walhi).

“The Australian Government must not repeat the environmental tragedy east of the Lesser Sunda Islands” For his part, Walhi’s regional director, Umbu Wulong Tanamahu emphasized.

In 2009, the Montara oil well in the Timor Sea, operated by the Australian subsidiary of the Thai company PTTEP, caused a massive oil spill, equivalent to 2500 barrels of oil for two and a half months. Over 90,000 km of ocean per day², affecting thousands of Indonesian fishermen and seaweed producers. Even after 14 years, the victims have not been compensated.

On the Australian side, NGO Friends of the Earth voiced similar criticism. In the report cited Jakarta Post, Its campaign manager, Geoff Waters, said decommissioning an offshore drilling rig like the Northern Endeavor should be done onshore to properly dispose of its hazardous waste: “But with the operation in the hands of the Union Environment Ministry, all these safety instructions seem to have gone out the window.”