SYDNEY, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- Australian investigators are unlikely to confirm the culprit responsible for an oil spill that washed up on Fraser Island after initial analysis found it's the same type used by large trading ships servicing Asian trade routes, authorities confirmed on Tuesday.
An investigation was launched into the offending vessel after emergency crews spent two weeks cleaning up Queensland state's Fraser Island's pristine beaches after oil patties were found washed up, deep inside the world heritage listed Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
"Reverse trajectory modeling of the oil indicates that the likely origin of the spill as being the principal shipping lanes from Brisbane to Asia and from the western Coral Sea down the Australian east coast," Queensland state Ports Minister Mark Bailey said in a statement on Tuesday.
"These are relatively busy shipping lanes and the volume of ship traffic combined with the weathering of the oil samples will make identifying a culpable ship difficult."
Australia however won't give up the search, Bailey said, using the year-long hunting for the culprit who discharged 15 tons of oil off of Cape Upstart in July 2015 that triggered 1.5 million Australian dollars (1.13 million U.S. dollars) clean-up as precedent.
"We have considerable expertise in the area of tracking down vessels responsible for polluting our coastal waters and we won't give up," Bailey said.
If convicted, the vessel's owner faces both Queensland state and Australian federal fines of up to 17 million Australian dollars (12.85 million U.S. dollars). Authorities will also seek repayment of the clean-up costs.
