Narrabri Gas

To Whom It May Concern,

I am opposed to the proposed Coal Seam Gas (CSG) project in the Pilliga. My objections are based on the destruction the project will cause, and the the devastation to habitat currently supporting wildlife.

The Pilliga is one of fifteen 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.

Methane is by far the major component of natural gas, and is a greenhouse gas seventy two 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.

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.

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.

Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is already prone to severe bushfires, this project will increase the risk of ignition.

Thank you
Steve Weymouth

I wish to formally object to the Narrabri Gas Project for the following reasons:-
1. It is safehaven 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.
2. 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.
3. It risks our clean water
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.
4. 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.
5. Bushfire risk will rise
Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is already prone to severe bushfires, this project will increase the risk of ignition.

I strongly oppose the Pilliga CSG Project.
This technology for accessing gas is unproven in relation to its impact on water resources. There is a massive risk of damage to aquifers , with long term negative impact on agricultural activities.
There is evidence that methane emissions associated with CSG mining in existing CSG operations are considerable. Methane is a much more harmful gas in relation to global warming than CO2, so the impact on global warming is a huge problem.
I urge you to reject this project & to suspend authorisation on any other CSG projects in NSW>

I wish to lodge an objection to coal seam gas mining in the Piliga area. The extraction of gas has short term benefits and long term major environmental costs to the area.

Please refer to attached letter of objection.

I object to the proposed Narrabri Gas Project, because there is no credible advantage to the citizens of NSW to be gained from it, but the potential for much harm to them and indirectly the whole world (by worsening the rate of climate change).
Taking the first point first, the main beneficiaries of the project will be the international companies involved in the project, and their (majority overseas) shareholders, with very little benefit accruing to Australian recipients. The number of potential long-term jobs is pitifully small in comparison with the number of people whose jobs and cultural heritage are threatened by this development (in farming, tourism, indigenous communities). The companies will not even pay significant tax, as they have already built up tax exemptions covering almost the whole life of the project. The gas produced will not benefit Australian citizens; quite the opposite, as the price of gas has already increased greatly to the point that it is not economical to consume it locally (in contrast to for example Japan, where they are forced to find some alternative to the nuclear generating plants shut down by the Fukushima disaster).
There is a significant danger of irreparable damage to water supplies through contamination and disruption of artesian sources with time constants of the order of a century, so that once problems are detected it will probably be too late to do anything about it. The project is to be implemented in a heritage area, with significant danger to native animals, and great risk of increasing the likelihood of fires because of the flaring of unused gas (even during fire ban periods). It is already clear that even with the existing level of climate change, the incidence and severity of bushfires has increased significantly over a few years, and will increase even more rapidly in the future even if the Paris agreements are met, let alone if they are not, which currently is more likely.
Finally, in the wider context of climate change, and Australia's contribution to emission reduction, it is already clear that natural gas only has a limited part to play in potential replacement of coal as a fossil fuel, in relatively short term use of gas turbine plants which can be started quickly, and then only using conventional sources of gas. With large localised sources (conventional gas wells) feeding to relatively large localised consumers (gas turbine generating plants) there is a reasonable chance of limiting leakage, and benefiting from the reduced carbon emissions from gas vs coal. However, leakage only has to reach 3% before there is no advantage of gas over coal, and it has already been demonstrated that unconventional gas obtained by fracking on the average has leakage more than 3% (1% - 18% in some American studies for shale gas). Everyone has seen pictures of water in ponds and from taps near CSG plants being set on fire. The wide dispersion and difficult terrain on which the proposed Narrabri Gas Project will be implemented makes it extremely likely that there will be leakage greater than 3% regardless of what the proposers have to say on this matter. Even natural gas will have to be phased out in less than 20 years for there to be any chance of meeting the Paris target of 2 deg increase in temperature, and it is already too late to achieve 1.5 deg.

CSG is a disaster of an industry and I believe it has no place on this beautiful and valuable land. Nobody could reasonably deny the dangers that it poses to people and environment. There is absolutely no sensible, long term justification for this development.

I have 5 reasons I oppose the Pilliga CSG project:

1. It is safehaven 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.

2. 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.

3. It risks our clean water
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.

4. 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.

5. Bushfire risk will rise
Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is already prone to severe bushfires, this project will increase the risk of ignition.

I oppose the development of gas wells in the Pilliga. I have great concern for the continued failure of our government to address anthropocentric climate change and to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. I regret that Santos management is so driven to make a quick buck that it also is acting so irresponsibly in massively increasing the burden of greenhouse gases.

I don't believe that the planned CSG Gas field will be of any real benefit to Australia. I also believe that the risk of potential contamination of Australia's water supplies above and below ground is worth the significant risk, in a country that is the driest inhabited continent on earth.

Wouldn't we as a Nation want to become a major exporter of clean food to massive markets like China. This Gas field could jeopardise our ability to feed our own people, with risk of contamination JUST NOT WORTH THE RISK!

We object strongly to the contamination and the destruction that flows from anything to do with C S G mining.

There are at least five reasons to oppose the Pilliga CSG project:

1. It is a refuge 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.

2. 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.

3. It risks our clean water across three states

The Narrabri gasfield poses a great risk to our two most precious water resources: Stretching across NSW, Queensland and South Australia the Great Artesian Basin and the Murray-Darling Basin are under threat. The area of the Great Artesian Basin with the highest recharge rates is almost entirely contained within the Pilliga East forest.

4. 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.

5. Bushfire risk will rise

Methane flare stacks up to 50m high would be running day and night, even on total fire ban days. The Pilliga is already prone to severe bushfires, this project will increase the risk of ignition.

I thank you in advance for your close, in-depth consideration of this vital issue for our state and nation as a whole.

CSG has been shown to be damaging and harmful. It pollutes the surrounding streams and rivers and most importantly the water tables. It expels excess greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. It destroys the landscapes whereever wells are situated.

3 reasons why this proposal should not go ahead are :-

1. The pillaga state forest is a safehaven for threatened wildlife
2. It risks our clean water.
3.The Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians are opposed

I might be so bold to suggest that Santos invest in developing renewable energy sources rather than use a finite source of energy which is playing a part in the changing climate of the planet.

Water is our most precious resource. It has few harmful effects apart from floods. It is needed for our very survival. Those people who live and rely on this water do not want it spoiled by CSG.

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.

There are hundreds of cultural sites as well as songlines and stories connecting the Gamilaraay to the forest and to the groundwater beneath. I stand shoulder to shoulder with the traditional owners of this land in protecting it from destructive CSG mining.

To add CSG mining will add more damage than already occurs from Coal mining. This can have but one certain outcome which will be the degredation of one of the state of NSW's Great temperate forests. NO MORE CSG.

The CSG proposal for the Pilliga will effect a range of environments in the area: water quality, wildlife habitats, farming communities. It is opposed by traditional owners and it will change forever the unique Pilliga forest area. not only will the construction of 850 wells destroy forest, but the constant building of treatment plants and pipelines and the maintenance of this infrastructure will continue to erode the fabric and nature of the forest. This makes the effects of this proposal permanent.

I am writing to send my objections to the EIS that Santos has given to the government. this is because it does not address several important issues
1. we live in the driest nation on earth, we should not risk the Great Artesian Basin by fracking in this area.
2 Farmers in this area are objecting to the detrimental affect it will have on nearby farms
3 The amount of methane which escapes from gas wells is unacceptable and dangerous .
4 The light from the burning off of gas will light the sky over the Coonabarabran Observatory.
5 The Pilbara forest is home to many endangered animals and plants

Marie Morris

I am opposed to the Santos coal sim gas project as it will pose - A threat to the purity of the water supplies of the region.
- It will pose a bush fire threat from the gases burning in the air.
- It will be a threat to the bio diversity of the region.
- It does not have the approval of the traditional owners.

I am writing to express my concern about the Narrabi gas project. Coal seam gas drilling is not a sustainable, long term solution to our energy requirements. Furthermore, it poses a significant threat to the precious and equally fragile ecosystems that are essential for human health. Let's think about our own health rather than the short term profit of a mining company.

Dear NSW Government,

The reasons that I object to the CSG proposal for the Pillaga is that we now know that large amounts of methane escapes continually from CSG wells, adding to climate change and making local people ill. As well, if anything goes wrong with the aquifers, there is no way back, we can't plug the aquifer cracks. This is a frightening prospect and will cause great problems which we can not control. Then there is the problem of what to do with the produced water etc, etc. All these risks and costs are too high.

The gas mined in NSW and in Australia is now mostly destined for export and our own gas price is set to match the export price. The companies have entered into these export contracts and the Australian people and the environment are paying too high a price for these export contracts, especially as the financial benefits mostly go to the multinational companies and their overseas shareholders..

People who want the CSG mining to go ahead are wedging the community by saying if you are against CSG mining, industry and private consumers won't be able to afford the local gas prices and great misery will descend upon Australia. This is a false argument and artificially created to push the CSG mining and not considering the costs to the environment etc.

The argument that CSG mining will provide many jobs in the regions is often very overstated and the Australia Institute has done thorough research to prove this. The NSW Government can invite Santos to build solar farms, wind farms and other renewable energy sources and create jobs..

There is enough gas in Australia to meet Australia's needs, as the past CEO of AGL said in his farewell speech. The gas export companies have miscalculated the opposition by the people of Australia who do not want to sacrifice our country for the profits of multinational companies.

I am totally against the development of CSG wells in the Pillaga because it is a major sanctuary and remnant forest for wildlife. Furthermore it has been categorically proved by numerous recent scientific reports that such natural gas wells leak methane gas at a catastrophic rate which will adversely affect climate. NSW has no right and certainly no public mandate to aid the development of this project by Santos.

I object to this project proceeding. Coal Seam Gas is not essential to the development and prosperity of our state, unlike the outstanding rural agriculture in the Narrabri District.

The level of intrusion by mining companies in this important part of NSW is offensive and should be curtailed. CSG mining is harmful to our environment and can only cause harm to this important agricultural community that has been providing an essential service to this country for over 100 years, and will continue to do so provided CSG and other harmful practices are kept well away.