Narrabri Gas

I support Santos and the Narrabri Gas Project because I believe it will provide good employment opportunities for the community. I have lived in Narrabri my whole life, and am a mother of 3 young children. I want to raise my children in a town that is moving forward and I think Santos can assist Narrabri in developing. The Narrabri Gas Project will help drought proof our local economy through times of drought.
I like how Santos have become a trusted part of our community and I have been a long-term supporter of them and this project.

This cannot go ahead, destroying sustainability for money.

Santos is providing future employment for young people in our community.

I support the Narrabri Gas Project for the following reasons:

- Boosts our community
- Cleaner resource than coal

1. 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. 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.¹

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.

Santos' Project will provide jobs for the community and gas to NSW. All in all it brings money to the town

I support the Narrabri Gas Project because it is good for the area and creates jobs and brings funds to the town and community.

To proceed with this expansion furthers Santos' environmental vandalism. Not only will it jeopardise Aboriginal sites and native plants and animals in the region, it will pollute the irreplaceable ground water. The site has already shown it cannot be trusted to deal properrly and safely with waste - the production of more of this will greatly increase the risks of local environmental damage. All of this, when taken together with the impact on cllimate change, which is being largely ignored by our governments, and by mining companies like Santos, makes the development too great a risk - the many costs far outweigh the possible benefits.

I believe that Santos should be able to continue the gas project as it would be a benefit to the Narrabri Community in the form of jobs and income for local people and businesses.
We need guarantees around water contamination as we use this water for drinking not just for livestock. We need instant notification if any exceedances of any chemical levels are found in the water, not after 2 months of investigation by the department.

I object to coal seam gas mining in the Pilliga as it will:
- contribute to approx 1000 hectares of cleared forest which is the habitat for many bird and animal species, regulates rainfall and provides oxygen for all of us.
- stir up toxic water waste and release into pristine waterways and produce salt biproduct which has no means of disposal.
- it will lead to the deliberate release of methane and toxic gases.
- it causes trauma to local Indigenous sacred sites.
- it is a short-sighted method of resource development as the impact environmentally is tremendous and there are our children and children's children to think of - what will they be left with? A waste land.

I am lost for words as to how politicians can sell out their country at the highest bidder without any regard as to the impact on the environment. They have to live with the consequences too.

There are better alternatives

I have serious concerns about the EIS's biodiversity impact assessment, as well as the impacts to groundwater. We need to leave fossil fuels in the ground in order to seriously tackle climate change. The price paid for this project is higher than Australia can afford.

I am against the proposal because of direct and indirect pollution associated with has collecting. I am also in support of the Indigenous owners and managers of the land who, I believe, predominantly do not want this proposal to go ahead. As a tourist I want to see beauty in NSW and not ugly has Moines. The Santos proposal should be rejected. Thank you.

protect the pilliga for future generations. gas seam drilling is plain stupid. it ruins water ways and is dangerous. dont risk it

We need to care for our environment, save the pilliga forest for future generations, cutting into fragments will only adversely affect biodiversity

As a farmer and a person who owns a large not for profit wetland forever damaged by deep drains and toxic water bought to the surface which raised our pH to toxic levels and killed all fauna in our once award winning wetlands
I am totally opposed to drilling InThe Pilliga Forest and do not support CSG in any form.ironically we have brown coal under our wetlands which we managed to stop being developed many years ago , only to lose it with filthy deep drains only metres deep.
We argued for many years that the risks were too great and not even I expected the final result which was devestating .

Water is too precious to take significant risks and deep drilling especially the Great Artesian Basin should be a criminal offence in my opinion as all bores eventually fail and many fail very early. How dare we make such appalling decisions on behalf of our younger generations knowing the poor history and risks of CSG projects.
We are not short of natural gas in Australia it was sold off without thought for the future. Please desist from any thought of drilling in the Pilliga forest it is to valuable and would destroy the whole biodiversity of the area.

I object very strongly to the Narrabri Gas Project. I grew up at Gunnedah, lived for several years with my husband and family at Narrabri and was lucky enough to visit the Pilliga State Forest, before gas extraction began there. It is a very special place, impressive in its vastness and because of the many species of birds and animals to be found there.


This project will fragment a huge 95000 hectares of this forest, an internationally recognised habitat for over 200 bird species and many threatened and endangered species of our native animals, including the koala.This alone is enough reason for me to be against the project, but it is not even the most important reason I have.

The project, even more importantly, threatens Australia's two greatest natural water resources: the Great Artesian Basin and the Murray-Darling River System.The area of the basin with the highest recharge rate is contained almost wholly in the east pilliga. The water removed for the extraction of coal-seam gas could lower the water pressure in the recharge area of the forest, potentially stopping the free flow of water to the surface throughout the whole artesian basin. Furthermore, the pilliga creeks run into the Namoi River, part of the Murray-Darling Basin, our greatest river system. Contamination of the Namoi from drilling fluid spills and salty treated water from the 850 proposed wells, would not only affect areas relying on the Namoi, in itself is a huge area, but would spread over time to other parts of the Murray-Darling basin, possibly to all of it.

Unfortunately, related to this second reason is a third reason I am against the project. Santos has a very bad history of dangerous spills and leaks in many places, including in the Pilliga State Forest. It has already contaminated a pilliga aquifer with high levels of uranium, plus lead, arsenic, aluminium and barium. Over 20 spills and leaks of toxic coal seam gas have also been reported from its storage pipes, ponds and well heads. It has already proven it cannot be trusted, especially when what is at stake is the health and survival of two of our greatest natural water resources and the huge proportion of Australians dependent on them!

Also this project has the very real potential to cause catastrophic bushfires fires in the pilliga (already prone to fires in very hot conditions) from the 50m high methane flare stacks that would burn 24 hours 365 days a year.

Unfortunately, Santos also has no solution for the thousands of tonnes of salt produced in the extraction process.This alone would leave a toxic legacy in the area.

Add to this:100s of farmers surrounding the pilliga whose livelihoods are threatened have protested against it; 96% of the 99 communities surrounding the pilliga surveyed are against it, because they know they and their families will be badly affected by it and the traditional guardians of the area, the Gamilaraay people are against It, because it threatens not only the forest, and its animals, birds and groundwater, but also their own cultural heritage, with many of their song lines and stories connected to the forest and its water.

Every single one of the reasons I have for being against this project is important on its own: together they make an overwhelming case against approving the Narrabri gas project.

I, Dianne Kerr, am writing this to express my absolute objection to the Santos EIS;

* Santos have had minimum consultation with the public - the consultation they have had, has shown that majority of the public is against the project - Santos have no social licence.

*This project WILL have devastatingly significant impacts The Great Artesian Basin, with long-term, and very possibly, irreversible, affects. Santos are compromising the future supply and quality of our most valuable resource. I do not believe Santos can proceed without causing damage to the water table.

*the EIS is quite sporadic with facts, therefore I do not believe it should even be considered for Government approval. We can not trust a company with so many faults in their Environmental Impact Statement.

Our future, and the future of generations to come is in the hands of the Government - who need to listen now to those who elected you.

It is of best interest to the people and our country that I reject Santos' EIS.

Sincerely,
Dianne Kerr

This is one of the last truly special places on earth. Just leave it alone. How many of you have even been there? We've all seen what is happening in the USA. Enough is enough, its time to look beyond short term gains.