Narrabri Gas

I absolutely oppose any wells proposed in the Pilliga Forest and anywhere else for that matter.

The Turnbull Government and the coal seam gas industry say there is a looming gas supply 'crisis'. Yet Australia is the world's biggest exporter of gas.

Stop exporting our gas! Consideration and planning must extend beyond the lifetimes of the people in this current government and the coal seam industry. This isn't about money anymore; this is about preserving long term heritage and health of the planet.

Preservation and responsible guardianship MUST be the priority now.

I deeply care for our environment & supporting the foundations of a healthy future. Therefor I wish that we end CSG mining in the Pillaga. Although we have all benefited in australia from fossil fuel industries through lack of awareness of their devastating effect,we are no longer so ignorant & we must now stop this crime against the future. With the Pillaga, it seems the biggest problem involves the unknown influence of CSG mining on the Artesian basin which seems to have an unfathomable time frame to its formation & ongoing presence as a healthy system. There is no valid support for the short term profits of GSG mining which potentially will destroy this little understood underground water system . Teena Wright

Some democracy Australia is proving to be:
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.
There is an ever increasing movement towards discontinuing fossil fuels in other developed nations but while Australia is offering a cheap and harmless (to them) alternative, it will continue to be destroyed by white man's greed.

The Pilliga has been home to koalas as well as other wildlife for many years and this project, which has already had a devastating effect on koalas, will decimate them.

Santos, like Metgasco at Bentley, has no social licence to drill for Coal Seam Gas in the Pilliga. It's clear that overwhelmingly the community rejects it. That opposition comes from farmers, ordinary citizens and those who've researched the dangers of Coal Seam Gas. We know how damaging it is to our water, land and aid and to the health of the whole population.

The excuse that gas in NSW is scarce is a red herring as the only reason for that - if indeed it's the situation - is because the mining companies export almost all they have mined because they can make a larger profit by doing so.

Ordinary people are disenchanted with the government and the reason for that can be found generally in the inability of it to listen to the concerns of the community. It has the opportunity now to reject Santos's application and keep NSW free of Coal Seam Gas, which will give it a significant drawcard in the future.

In the interests of our children of the future - and I'm a great grand-mother with deep concern for the future my great gand-children and their generation are facing - I ask you to please listen to the people and say no to Coal Seam Gas.

As a resident of South West Victoria I am already well informed on the damage Coal Seam Gas has on the environment and how the companies in this practice do not care one iota for the people and their land. The damage is left behind for others to live with. Since there is so much in evidence as to why any fracking in any part of the world should never occur, our governments should be putting it's people' their land and communities ahead of greedy companies engaged in such destruction. The Piliga Region should be protected for our country and our future generations including it's flora and fauna. If you have any ethics, conscience and moral compass, you will never allow CSG mining.

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 Area. 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 coordination. 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 pollution. The area has been internationally recognised as a `dark sky park' 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.

To whom it may concern

I am greatly concerned that Santos are making a final push to develop the Pilliga for coal seam gas. The Pilliga forest is the largest intact woodland in eastern Australia, stretching across half a million hectares in north-western New South Wales. It is a unique ecological refuge, home to 25 nationally listed and 48 state-listed threatened species, such as the Pilliga Mouse, which rely on the Pilliga for survival. This development will have a direct negative impact on these threatened species.


The sandstone under the Pilliga is a vital recharge area for the Great Artesian Basin, and creeks that flow through the Pilliga provide clean water into the Murray Darling Basin. These water sources are the lifeblood of farming communities throughout the southeast and inland Australia. Coal seam gas has time and again polluted whatever water source is in direct contact with the wells and any water used in the manufacturing process. Once this water source is contaminated there is no turning back. Santos will be able to wipe its hands of commitments to clean up any ensuing environmental destruction. Why should they care if we are willing to prostitute our precious resources.

It is time to stop coal seam gas production and redirect our resources towards the production of renewable energy. The future is not in destroying our environment in the search for the last gas fields. We have too much to loose should this project go ahead. Our future water source, food security, several species, unfathomable habitat destruction, unimaginable health impacts all for the profits of Santos.

I urge you to stop this coal seam gas proposal once and for all.

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.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.

To whom it may concern.

In 2016 my wife and I spent some time in Baradine and in Coonabarrabran. From both towns we explored the Pilliga Forest, and what a wonderful experience it was!. That the Department is contemplating allowing Gas Fracking in these beautiful forests and their surrounds is ( to my wife and I ) unbelievably short sighted. Not to mention the big risk to the contamination of the underground and Limestone aquifers.

It is so short sighted and risky!

There is no shortage of natural gas. In Western Australia we have gas in abundance., and we are selling it to other nations for almost nothing.
Successive Federal and our West Australian Governments have not considered the Australian Nation nor their people in setting prices for this gas. It should have been piped and shipped all over Australia. Instead we have this greedy
Fracking which we believe has and will turn valuable land into a waste land and contaminate water. To contaminate good water
(in Australia) is unforgivable!

We wish to register our disapproval and objection to this
monstrous idea.

I am very concerned about the adverse environmental impact that the development of coal seam gas exploration and mining are likely to have.
There are significant risks are posted to underground water reserves through the use of fracking.
Once an aquifer is contaminated through leaching from fracking there is no remediation process available. The contamination is irreversible. Australia is the driest inhabited continent and as such our water reserves are crucial for agricultural development and sustainability of the Australian population.
I believe the risk posed through development of the Narrabri coal seam gas field is unacceptable.

Hi,
I wish for the Narrabri Gas Project not to go ahead because of the below reasons:-

1. The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Australian Basin--Australia's largest groundwater aquifer
2. The Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians are opposed
3. Farmers and other local community reject the project
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
5. The Pilliga is a haven for threatened wildlife
6. Coal seam gas fuels dangerous climate change
7. Human health is compromised by coal seam gas
8. The nation's premier optical astronomical observatory is at risk
9. Thousands of tonnes of salt waste will result from the project
10. Risk of fires would increase throughout the Pilliga's tinder-box conditions

Since completing my research, I am 100% against all csg exploration and mining in Australia. Particularly in close proximity to the Artisan basin.

The locals (96%) don't want it, the indigenous peoples don't want it and Australia's most important aquifer is place at risk. Evidence from overseas shows that this is not a safe practice and is harmful to the environment - there is plenty of evidence to show the damage this type of practice does to acquifers. I strongly urge you not to place 850 coal seam gas wells in the heart of the Pilliga forest in North West New South Wales.

"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.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."

No company like Santos with such a history of past spills and a record of contaminating water supplies should be allowed to undertake further environmentally hazardous projects such as this.

The risks to water in general and the Great Artesian Basin in particular are far too great to allow coals seam gas operations in the Pilliga. This is a crucial resource for agriculture and the environment and one short-sighted mining operation could jeapardise it forever.
Australia doesn't need any more polluting gas. We already have more than we can sell or use.
The Pilliga is an important and unique environment that would be threatened with air pollution, heavy metals and other toxic substances from coal seam gas mining.
This short-sighted application has risks that far outweigh any economic outcome.
Please refuse this application and help Australia act for sustainable energy sources that don't risk our irreplaceable environment.

I 100% disagree to the disruption, damage and longevity of degradation including loss of a pristine environment that will be caused if the approval is given to drill 850 coal seam gas wells right through the heart of the Pilliga forest and through the Great Artesian Basin.

I object to this proposal. To turn Australia's largest inland forest into a gas field is environmental suicide. CSG mining is too damaging to the environment - Santos has already created over 20 pollution scares, including groundwater contamination, waste spills, and continuing leaks from evaporation ponds. The short term gain from setting this up will be outweighed by the environmental devastation for future generations - see what's happening in QLD.

CSG technology is bad for local farmers, bad for the state's environment and bad for the country and its economy.
The water table is disturbed and in many cases damaged irreparably with previously healthy water being polluted. This cannot be predicted.

The surface of the land is covered in roads, pipes, wells and fences making previously attractive countryside into an eyesore. This is particularly offensive to traditional owners (native peoples) as well as migrant rural residents.

Leakage of CNG and CO2 gas albeit small from each well into the atmosphere causes a potent greenhouse effect. This is poorly controlled and monitored due to the cowboy nature of the industry.

CNG is mostly exported by multinationals with minimal royalties returned to the Australian people. This valuable resource is being wastefully exploited in an insensitive, dangerous and callous manner.

No to fracking anywhere in Australia.

The proposed Narrabri Gas Project poses far too many risks to both groundwater and surface water resources to be considered viable. Mitigation of fractured or contaminated aquifers is not currently possible, while similar action for surface waters is variable in success.In addition Increased salinity at the surface associated with dewatering has not been adequately addressed. Short term financial gains should not outweigh long term security of Australian freshwater reserves.

The majority of the text below is not my original creation, but sourced elsewhere. I have thoroughly read it, comprehend it, & passionately endorse it. Please treat this every bit as seriously as if i had composed it entirely myself.

I strenuously object to this project proposal for many reasons, including:

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.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. Additionally of course, the CO2 generated from the eventual combustion directly further contributes to ongoing anthropogenic climate change.

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.


¹SoilFutures Consulting 2014, Great Artesian Basin Recharge Systems and Extent of Petroleum and Gas Leases. http://www.gabpg.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/GAB-Report1.pdf
²http://www.smh.com.au/environment/santos-coal-seam-gas-project-contaminates-aquifer-20140307-34csb.html
³BirdLife International (2017) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Pilliga http://www.birdlife.org
⁴Marion Carey Doctors for the Environment Australia (DEA), Air pollution from coal seam gas may put public health at risk The Conversation, November 20, 2012
⁵https://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/oct/21/siding-spring-observatory-threat-coal-seam-gas-light-pollution
⁶http://darksky.org/first-dark-sky-park-in-australia-designated/