Narrabri Gas

Please please don't let this beautiful place be ruined for eternity, there are other forms of energy that leave our land for our children

The beauty and delicate ecosystem of the Pilliga Forest is an Iconic Australian landscape.
Needs to be protected for the Wildlife, Fauna and the Future of our grandchildren.
Think about what you are doing

Yours Sincerely
Rosemarie Engl

I strongly oppose the implementation of the Narrabri Gas Project. The area is a wildlife haven essential to the survival of many threatened native species. The fragmentation of the area with gas infrastrucure (roads etc) would be disastrous. The risk of bushfire would vastly increase. The coal seam gas industry has a history of spillages/pollution and assurances from companies like Santos to the contrary are worthless. The local community opposes the proposal, I,understand. The assertion of a "gas supply crisis" is nonsense - the problem is caused by the fact that the corporations involved prefer to sell gas at higher prices to oversea customers.

Unconventional coal seam gas extraction is a very destructive process, that leaves the environment and communities shattered. We do not need CSG as Australia is exporting enormous amounts of natural gas that could be used in Australia to provide the necessary base load for electricity production until we can provide 100% renewable energy.

It breaks my heart to know of the damage this CSG will do to the Pilliga region. Coal Seam Gas has caused huge health & environmental problems in America for the people in the regions close by and even further afield, as well as for livestock and other animals. We do not want this in Australia let alone in such a beautiful areas as the Pilliga region. The native animals will suffer. Has an environmental impact study been done yet? If it has it would have to support a no-go.

The process will start with small inroads, clearings, & infrastructure then will lead the way for hundreds of these ghastly, environment destroying wells & well pads reaching way down into the depths of this glorious paradise.

Please I beg you, do not allow this to happen to such a wonderful part of Australia - to any part of Australia.
It is totally unnecessary to destroy the environment at the expense of the wilderness.

In fact we need to maintain the wildness areas to counteract the damage that CSG will produce in environmental destruction as well as pollution from the use of the gas that is 'mined'.

Hands off our land and the great Artesian basin Santos. Enough!

The climate is warming & this will affect a country like Australia which is experiencing record summer temps.So to allow fossil fuels to exploit a forest area creating greenhouse gases & removing trees which actually help mitigate the damage seems to me to be totally irresponsible & sheer folly & short sighted for short term profit. Forests & parks & nature reserves should be 100% protected. Your wildlife is decling because of loss of habitat! Does the govt care about Australias unique environment??? it doesnt seem like it!!!

I object to such a dangerous and large scale project that subjects the environment to environmental damage and disaster

I am opposed to the Narrabri Project because of its potential cumulative impact on the natural resources in the region( water tables, river system), the fact that the majority of landholders in the area are opposed to this development, and the aboriginal community who has a long and proud history in the area are also opposed to it.

It is sad to see the continuation of raping our environment. Santos makes no guarantees to protect the natural water resources and the flora and fauna in the area. Their interest is just clear: to get as much profit out of this enterprise. What would happen to the land afterwards, they don't care.
We have seen this process many times before.

I am just a concerned citizen who has seen so much devastation of the natural world in my 50 years, for short term financial gain that it beggars belief that one could be worth even 1% of the irreplaceable other.

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.


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/

I am against this project as I think it is sheer ignorance on these big companies behalf that they are prepared to destroy beautiful natural environments in the name of greed. Australia is backward when it comes to renewable energy. It is not the people's wish that we continue to be so. Our government needs to listen to these communites affected by this backward thinking before it is irreversible. We elect our governemtns to represent us and to protect us and yet they continually seem to fall down in this area and give in to greed and damn the environmental long term consequences of their small minded thinking. Shame on the government and anyone who supports these projects.

To whom it may concern,
I'm a member of The Wilderness Society. Please ensure the Pilliga forest remains protected. Building a CSG mine will worsen destructive climate change. As we know, climate change will destroy the planet and this project will do nothing to protect it. I demand you reverse your decision to build a mine in this very place.

If you've come this far, I appreciate the time you've taken to read this message.

-Max

To the Department of Planning and Environment,

My name is Aaron Storti, I am writing to you as a concerned citizen regarding the proposed Narrabri Gas Project. My objections are simple, this project will be a disaster not just for the environment but the local community as well.

On the community, the Gamilaraay people are the traditional custodians of the Pilliga forest and as such their approval is mandatory. The local farmers are also opposed, around 99 communities in total with many among their number engaging actively in protest actions, displaying their commitment to the sanctity of the region.

On the environment, I hold grave concerns especially around the fragmentation of the forest and the disposing of between 17,000 and 42,000 tonnes of salt waste each year. Increased salinity can be huge problem for local waterways, with many species of invertebrates essential to the ecosystem unable to survive. The species at the top of the food chain will suffer the most from this avoidable disruption, animals such as koalas, wallabies, possums and many others, some endemic only to the Pilliga. Further, contaminants related to the CSG process such as lead, aluminium, arsenic and barium are almost invariably going to find their way into the same waterways, through leaks and spills of infrastructure, eg(pipes, wells) and when they find their way from the creeks to the Namoi river this could prove disastrous.

In closing I would like to thank you for considering my submission, I hope the right and just decision is made.

Yours sincerely,
Aaron Storti

I strongly object to this vandalism of this priceless wilderness. This destruction of this land will be remembered by future generations.

1. The Narrabri Gas Project risks precious water sources, including the Great Australian BasinÂ--AustraliaÂ's largest groundwater aquifer
The Narrabri gas field 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 areasÂ--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 RiverÂ--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 waterÂ--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 Â`biodiversity hotspotsÂ' 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 pipelinesÂ--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 nationÂ'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 Â`dark sky parkÂ'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 PilligaÂ'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.
- See more at: https://www.wilderness.org.au/final-push-pilliga?utm_source=phplist&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=FEB_17_wildnews-%5Bmessageid%5D&utm_content=story1#sthash.YK5mGTBS.dpuf

This plan completely erodes what is left of Indigenous land rights and protection in Australia. If the indigenous peoples of the Gamilaraay tribe are going to be ignored, then listen to the hundreds of local farmers protesting as well. Despite the fact that no 'voters' want this to go ahead, and it serves only the rich corporations set to make the money from mineral extraction, I implore that this committee considers the future of young Australians that are already facing the effects of a warming climate, and who are still being ignored. Climate change is real, renewables are again and again proving to be more effective and cheaper, see recent ANU report. Any action to increase carbon emissions is morally reprehensible and economically backward.

strongly opposed

Coal seam gas extraction is an environmentally destructive practice. It should be banned in NSW just as it has been banned in Victoria. I trust that the NSW Government Department of P&E will stand up to the proponents of this despicable practice and protect the future of NSW. Thank you.