Plibersek intervenes in giant ‘climate bomb’ gas project

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek will force controversial gas fracking projects in Australia’s far north to undergo tough environmental checks, as the federal government brawls with political opponents and miners over its nature law reforms.

Plibersek intervened on Saturday in the debate over the impact of gas exploration on water resources in the Beetaloo Basin, 500 kilometres south of Darwin, declaring the three projects would be subject to scientific assessments.

The Beetaloo Basin is one of few new potential supplies of onshore gas as Queensland’s gasfields deplete.Credit: Justin McManus

Her decision comes as the government is locked in negotiations with the Coalition and the Greens over her plan to create a national environment protection agency to police development approvals and compliance.

The minor party is demanding more rigorous environmental protections in exchange for its support, while Opposition Leader Peter Dutton recently told mining industry executives he remained sceptical of the need for an EPA.

Plibersek is also under fire from miners and sections of the media over her recent decision to reject the site selected for a tailings dam at a Central West NSW gold mine on Indigenous heritage grounds.

The Beetaloo Basin is one of very few new potential supplies of onshore gas in Australia as Queensland’s gas fields deplete, with shortages forecast for the eastern seaboard as soon as this year.

Green groups warn the emissions that would be produced if gas was pumped from Beetaloo Basin would help tip the world beyond damaging levels of global warming, while local Indigenous groups are concerned about the projects’ potential impact on water resources.

The Northern Territory government, the project developers and Plibersek’s department did not refer Beetaloo projects for expert assessment, arguing their exploration activities were not expected to have enough of an impact to warrant it.

However, Plibersek said on Saturday that project appraisals must be based on laws and science. The expert panel’s assessment is expected by December 31.

“That’s why I’ve asked the scientific experts to look into these projects to settle any concerns about potential impacts on water,” she said.

“Everyone concerned should respect the independent scientists – not rush to judgment on the basis of assumptions.”

The assessments will be carried about by the Independent Expert Scientific Committee, which gives advice on the impact of coal and gas projects on water resources. Projects found likely to have major impacts can then be assessed against national environment laws with powers to veto development.

Fracking injects high-pressure fluid deep underground to free gas trapped in the rock. Underground water resources are tapped to provide fluid for the process, while fracking chemicals pose contamination risks.

Djingili elder and Nurrdalinji Native Title Aboriginal Corp chairman Samuel Janama Sandy said water resources must be protected for future generations.

“The impact on water hasn’t been properly looked at by experts but they are still going ahead with the drilling anyway. So it is important that this new assessment by the committee is properly looked at in partnership with traditional owners,” he said.

“These places are our historical information, information we share with our children [and] grandchildren so that they see it’s important to continue for the next generations. Our water is precious. We don’t want that fracking in the Beetaloo.”

Lingiari MP Marion Scrymgour, whose electorate takes in the Beetaloo Basin, welcomed Plibersek’s intervention, saying water was imperative to First Nations communities.

“In regional and remote parts of Lingiari, groundwater is relied upon for drinking and to sustain our natural environments. I take seriously any potential impacts to that,” Scrymgour said.

The Northern Territory’s 2018 Pepper inquiry found industry risks could be managed if its recommendations were implemented in full.

But energy analyst RepuTex estimates a total of 1.4 billion tonnes of greenhouse emissions could be generated if a large gasfield were developed in the Beetaloo Basin. That is about three times Australia’s overall annual emissions.

Climate scientist Bill Hare, an adjunct professor at Murdoch University, said a Beetaloo gasfield would be a “climate bomb”.

“If it is allowed to proceed, this single project could undo all of our efforts to cut emissions,” Hare said.

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