Narrabri Gas

I ask NSW PLANNING to think and plan 7 generations ahead. Choose renewable energy now.

The current proposal is not acceptable because:

It will extract over 35 billion litres of toxic groundwater, much of it in the first five years. This water will be treated and in the early years will generate tens of thousands of tonnes of salt, for which there is no safe disposal plan.
It will clear close to 1,000 hectares of the Pilliga Forest, fragmenting the largest temperate woodland in New South Wales, home to unique wildlife.
It will cause significant diversion of water from a recharge aquifer of the Great Artesian Basin, which is a water resource relied upon by rural communities across western NSW.
It will lead to large deliberate and fugitive emissions of methane, adding to climate change.
It will cause more trauma to the regional Aboriginal community because the area of impact is crucially important to the spiritual, cultural and social life of Gamilaraay people.
It is not justified: Santos' own Coal Seam Gas export activities in Queensland have caused gas prices to rise and supply to become unpredictable. NSW should respond to this by investing in more reliable and ultimately cheaper renewable energy, not by letting Santos inflict more environmental, social and economic harm.
It will cause economic upheaval in Narrabri and put agricultural industries at risk, as well as causing light pollution that will ruin the dark night sky needed by the internationally renowned Siding Spring Observatory.
Coal Seam Gas is harmful to health. Neither the NSW Government nor Santos have investigated or dealt with the serious health effects of coal seam gas now appearing in peer-reviewed research in the United States.

Don't kill out forest to make more money

I object to this application

Do not approve the santos submission

I am against the drilling in the Pilliga Region.

Disturbing the environment in this way is akin to 'robbing Peter to pay Paul'.

This project is unnecessary as so many alternative sustainable sources of energy are available to drive our economy.

I was born in wee waa 1981 and bought up in pilliga I would like pilliga state forest around for generations to come as I am aboriginal.

I object to the proposed Santos coal seam gas expansion in the Pilliga on the following grounds. Firstly coal seam gas fuels climate change, secondly the area is a biodiversity hot spot and should be protected, not destroyed. In addition, the Gamilaraay people are opposed to this use of the land and the proposed gas field poses a risk to the Great Artesian Basin and the Murray Darling Basin. Finally coal seam gas does not have a social licence from the majority of people in New South Wales.

Please leave the Earth alone. There is plenty of wealth and abundance in this world for ALL OF US and it is home to ALL OF US; you included. It deserves our respect and gratitude for supporting US ALL on our path through this life. Look into your heart and ask yourselves what the LOVING thing to do is.

Thank you for respecting US ALL; yourselves included.

Please consider the following important facts:
The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Artesian Basin--Australia's largest groundwater aquifer
The Narrabri gasfield poses a real risk to our two most precious water resources: the Great Artesian Basin and the Murray-Darling Basin.
Creeks in the Pilliga run into the Namoi River--a part of the Murray Darling Basin. This system is vulnerable to contamination from drilling fluid spills and the salty treated water produced from the proposed 850 wells.

The Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians are opposed, because there are hundreds of cultural sites as well as songlines and stories connecting the Gamilaraay to the forest and to the groundwater beneath. Gamilaraay people are deeply involved in the battle against CSG, and have told Santos they do not want their country sacrificed for a coal seam gas field.

Farmers and other local community reject the project. Extensive community surveys have shown an average of 96% opposition to CSG. This stretches across a massive 3.2 million hectares of country surrounding the Pilliga forest, including 99 communities. Hundreds of farmers have participated in protest actions unlike any previously seen in the region.

The Narrabri Gas Project has a long history of spills and leaks of toxic CSG water--Santos cannot be trusted to manage the project safely
Santos has already contaminated a freshwater aquifer in the Pilliga with uranium at levels 20 times higher than safe drinking water guidelines, as well as lead, aluminium, arsenic and barium². In addition, there have been over 20 reported spills and leaks of toxic CSG water from storage ponds, pipes and well heads.

Very importantly, The Pilliga is a haven for threatened wildlife, one of 15 nationally listed `biodiversity hotspots' and is vital to the survival of threatened species like the Koala, Spotted-tailed Quoll, Black-striped Wallaby, Eastern Pygmy-possum, Pilliga Mouse and South-eastern Long-eared Bat. The forest is home to over 200 bird species and is internationally recognised as an Important Bird Area². The Santos gasfield would fragment 95,000 hectares of the Pilliga with well pads, roads, and water and gas pipelines--damaging vital habitat and threatening the survival of endangered species.

Coal seam gas fuels dangerous climate change. Methane is by far the major component of natural gas, and is a greenhouse gas 72 times more powerful than CO2. CSG fields contribute to climate change through the leakage of methane during the production, transport, processing and use of coal seam gas. Human health is also compromised by coal seam gas. A range of hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds can be released into the air from coal seam gas operations, including flaring of gas wells. The effects of volatile organic compounds vary, but can cause eye, nose and airway irritation, headache, nausea, dizziness and loss of coordination⁴. These impacts have been documented in human populations nearby to existing gasfields in Queensland, Sydney and in America.

The nation's premier optical astronomical observatory, the Siding Springs Observatory, situated in the Warrumbungles and adjacent to the Pilliga, is under threat from the Narrabri Gas Project due to light and dust pollution⁵. The area has been internationally recognised as a `dark sky park'⁶ and the 50m high gas flares proposed by Santos threaten the viability of the facility.

Thousands of tonnes of salt waste will result from the project. Santos has no solution for disposing of the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of salt that will be produced. Between 17,000 and 42,000 tonnes of salt waste would be produced each year. This industry would leave a toxic legacy in NSW.

Risk of fires would increase throughout the Pilliga's tinder-box conditions. Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is prone to severe bushfires. The project would increase ignition sources as well as extracting, transporting and storing a highly flammable gas right within this extremely fire-prone forest.

There is a plethora of crucial reasons why this is a bad idea. Please consider the future of our precious landscape.

The Planning and Environment Department's preamble to the Project states the "construction and operation of gas processing and water treatment facilities". This same preamble fails to mention the unavoidable DESTRUCTION of up to 1000 hectares of the Pilliga Forest and the detrimental effect on the wildlife dependent on these woodlands.
There is further mention of "a water management facility for the storage and treatment of produced water". The toxic nature of this produced water is ignored and the tens of thousands of tonnes of salt resulting from the water is also ignored. Currently there is no safe method of disposal of the salt.
This gas project, if approved, will have detrimental effects on a recharge aquifer of the Great Artesian Basin, the operation of the Siding Springs observatory and the Narrabri community at large.
There will be unavoidable fugitive methane emissions which will cause considerable harm to our climate and the proportion of gas captured and burned will necessarily add to our CO2 emissions.
With competitive renewable energy already a reality, there seems no justification for a project such as this, which would take many years before gas could be delivered to end users. to be approved. It is a dinosaur project spawned by dinosaur thinking.

1. The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Australian Basin--Australia's largest groundwater aquifer

The Narrabri gasfield poses a real risk to our two most precious water resources: the Great Artesian Basin and the Murray-Darling Basin. The area of the Great Artesian Basin with the highest recharge rates is almost entirely contained within the Pilliga East forest. In a worst-case scenario, the water removed for CSG extraction could reduce water pressure in the recharge areas--potentially stopping the free flow of waters to the surface at springs and bores across the whole Great Artesian Basin.



Creeks in the Pilliga run into the Namoi River--a part of the Murray Darling Basin. This system is vulnerable to contamination from drilling fluid spills and the salty treated water produced from the proposed 850 wells.


2. The Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians are opposed

There are hundreds of cultural sites as well as songlines and stories connecting the Gamilaraay to the forest and to the groundwater beneath. Gamilaraay people are deeply involved in the battle against CSG, and have told Santos they do not want their country sacrificed for a coal seam gas field.


3. Farmers and other local community reject the project

Extensive community surveys have shown an average of 96% opposition to CSG. This stretches across a massive 3.2 million hectares of country surrounding the Pilliga forest, including 99 communities. Hundreds of farmers have participated in protest actions unlike any previously seen in the region.



4. The Narrabri Gas Project has a long history of spills and leaks of toxic CSG water--Santos cannot be trusted to manage the project safely

Santos has already contaminated a freshwater aquifer in the Pilliga with uranium at levels 20 times higher than safe drinking water guidelines, as well as lead, aluminium, arsenic and barium². In addition, there have been over 20 reported spills and leaks of toxic CSG water from storage ponds, pipes and well heads. Santos cannot be trusted.


5. The Pilliga is a haven for threatened wildlife

The Pilliga is one of 15 nationally listed `biodiversity hotspots' and is vital to the survival of threatened species like the Koala, Spotted-tailed Quoll, Black-striped Wallaby, Eastern Pygmy-possum, Pilliga Mouse and South-eastern Long-eared Bat. The forest is home to over 200 bird species and is internationally recognised as an Important Bird Area². The Santos gasfield would fragment 95,000 hectares of the Pilliga with well pads, roads, and water and gas pipelines--damaging vital habitat and threatening the survival of endangered species.


6. Coal seam gas fuels dangerous climate change

Methane is by far the major component of natural gas, and is a greenhouse gas 72 times more powerful than CO². CSG fields contribute to climate change through the leakage of methane during the production, transport, processing and use of coal seam gas.



7. Human health is compromised by coal seam gas

A range of hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds can be released into the air from coal seam gas operations, including flaring of gas wells. The effects of volatile organic compounds vary, but can cause eye, nose and airway irritation, headache, nausea, dizziness and loss of coordination⁴. These impacts have been documented in human populations nearby to existing gasfields in Queensland, Sydney and in America.



8. The nation's premier optical astronomical observatory is at risk

The Siding Springs Observatory, situated in the Warrumbungles and adjacent to the Pilliga, is under threat from the Narrabri Gas Project due to light and dust pollution⁵. The area has been internationally recognised as a `dark sky park'⁶ and the 50m high gas flares proposed by Santos threaten the viability of the facility.


9. Thousands of tonnes of salt waste will result from the project

Santos has no solution for disposing of the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of salt that will be produced. Between 17,000 and 42,000 tonnes of salt waste would be produced each year. This industry would leave a toxic legacy in NSW.


10. Risk of fires would increase throughout the Pilliga's tinder-box conditions

Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is prone to severe bushfires. The project would increase ignition sources as well as extracting, transporting and storing a highly flammable gas right within this extremely fire-prone forest.

Thanks for the opportunity to comment
Rod

I totally oppose the CSG exploitation of the Pillaga and all other environmentally sensitive regions. When the underground water of the artesian basin is poisoned the legacy will be the degradation of land throughout. Enough is enough.

Please protect the Pilliga from becoming a gas field. Fossil fuels need to be faced out, renewable energy is a must, to save what is left of this world. It's just not intelligent or responsible to destroy more land. Please do the right thing for the Earth, it's people and our children!

No way we can allow this.Water is very precious in deed in OUR DRY COUNTRY OF OZ! Also the Overseas mining companies have HISTORICALLY left horrible messes wherever they have operated! Farmers,Aborigines,Ordinary Straight-up Citizens have a solemn duty 2 OPPOSE THIS SELL-OUT OF OZ.HERITAGE!

The potential risk the Australia's water sources is too great and the damage to the Pilliga forest will be unrecoverable, this project should not be allowed to occur.

1. The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Australian Basin--Australia's largest groundwater aquifer do not want their country sacrificed for a coal seam gas field.


2 The speed with which global warming is increasing puts the entire world into an emergency situation if we want to keep temperature increase to less than 2 degrees celsius. Methane is by far the major component of natural gas, and is a greenhouse gas 72 times more powerful than CO². CSG fields contributes substantially to climate change through the leakage of methane.

3. The Narrabri Gas Project has a long history of spills and leaks of toxic CSG water--Santos cannot be trusted to manage the project safely

Santos has already contaminated a freshwater aquifer in the Pilliga with uranium at levels 20 times higher than safe drinking water guidelines, as well as lead, aluminium, arsenic and barium². In addition, there have been over 20 reported spills and leaks of toxic CSG water from storage ponds, pipes and well heads. Santos cannot be trusted.

I beg the government, to have far more consideration for the future of my children and grandchildren in an environment which is becoming increasingly more hazardous to mankind. This project should not go ahead.

I think the government should reconsider this plan. Do not let it go ahead.

The proposed gas wells compromise our biosecurity, environmental quality and cultural heritage. The wells are unnecessary and potentially disastrous, as well as financially short-sighted with the rising role of renewables. We can see gas well infrastructure failing in existing sites - do not allow the expansion of this hugely risky industry in our Pilliga.

This cannot go ahead! Listen to the people!