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uthorities have asserted they are continuing their investigation into what caused the oil spill in Balikpapan Bay, East Kalimantan, including to determine the party or parties responsible for the incident.

Although a string of clean-up operations have reportedly tackled 90 percent of the crude oil slick, conservation groups have expressed their concerns over the environmental impact of the oil spill they have claimed as Indonesia’s largest environmental tragedy in the last 10 years.

Fathur Roziqin Fen of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment’s (Walhi) East Kalimantan office has cast doubt on the Balikpapan Environment Agency’s claim that 90 percent of the crude oil released from a burst undersea pipeline in Balikpapan Bay waters had been cleaned up.

“How could they make such a claim while people who live around the bay are still trying hard to clean it up?” Fathur said on Sunday.

The activist went on to say that the environmental impact of the oil spill could still be felt today. “There’s still a strong smell of oil,” said Fathur.

State oil and gas company Pertamina said on Wednesday that a burst pipeline, which it used to transfer crude oil from the Lawe-Lawe Terminal in North Penajam Paser regency to an oil refinery facility in Balikpapan, caused the oil spill that polluted Balikpapan Bay on March 31. The oil spill triggered fires, which killed five fishermen.

Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan claimed the oil spill incident in Balikpapan Bay had been handled professionally and everything was under control.

“We are investigating the party or parties that might have been responsible for the incident. To find out who is guilty, we must first contain the [pollution] problem. If there are parties that must be held accountable for the incident, legal action will be taken and administrative sanctions imposed upon them,” said Luhut on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Environment and Forestry Ministry’s law enforcement director general, Rasio Ridho Sani, said his institution was investigating how the pipeline could have broken and led to the oil spill.

“We are still assessing it thoroughly to see whether it was caused by the quality of the pipe or another factor,” said Rasio.

“According to the ‘polluter pays’ principle, the party who has caused environmental pollution must be held responsible,”

The oil spill in Balikpapan has triggered concerns, particularly as the data on the environmental impact of the incident are ambiguous.

According to the Environment and Forestry Ministry’s report released on Wednesday, the oil spill has affected some 7,000 hectares of Balikpapan Bay. It has also affected around 34 ha of mangrove forests in Kariagau village, while in Atas Air Margasari village, 6,000 mangrove trees and 2,000 mangrove seeds were damaged by the oil spill. The ministry also found that many crabs at Banua Patra beach were killed because of the spill.

On Friday, the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry even presented data indicating that a wider area had been affected by the pollution. The ministry’s marine and coastal area data laboratory head Widodo Pranowo said the area polluted by the oil spill had widened to 20,000 ha.

Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti doubted that the clean-up operation for a massive oil spill such as this could be finished in a short time.

The parties that should be held responsible for the incident still remain unknown.

Officials stated the oil spill was not Pertamina’s fault because it happened after a foreign coal vessel illegally passed through and dropped anchor in the bay, dragging away the pipeline.

“No vessel is permitted to drop anchor or even pass through the bay,” the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry’s oil and gas director general, Djoko Siswanto, said.

Citing a statement issued by the Transportation Ministry, Djoko said the vessel passing through Balikpapan Bay was the Panama-flagged MV Ever Judger.

“So, this was actually the fault of the vessel. [...] As there were casualties in the incident, the owner of the vessel could be charged for the crime. But it all still depends on the results of the ongoing investigation,” Djoko said.

Rasio said the latest satellite images from the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) showed that the oil spill had widened to 13,559 ha from the original 12,987 ha.

“What the satellite captured was the oil on the sea surface, because oil is lighter than water. And because the oil was on the sea surface, it was spread by the waves and currents, and the affected area became larger each day. But the thickness of the oil keeps reducing every day,” Rasio said.