I am objecting to this application by Santos. This will harm precious water resources, interfere with threatened wildlife and disrespect the views of the Gamilaraay Traditional Custodians. The The Narrabri Gas Project has a long history of spills and leaks and Coal seam gas fuels dangerous climate change. This is dangerous to our Health!! Do you want to be just that faceless person in a suit to approve this reckless submission? Thousands of tonnes of salt will be produced from this stupidity. The only out come from this submission which by the way does not have the support of Farmers and Custodians is the increased likelihood of fires. Don't pander to special interest and reject this proposal.
regards Alan O'Callaghan

Environmental vandalism on a huge scale!!
Leave our farm lands and water basin alone

This environmental catastrophe must be stopped now!

I grew up in coal mining country, my dad and family worked in the industry. They all lost their job, when the mine died out. We all had health problems as a result of the mine including Athsma, the highest in our region and used to use us as test cases. Farmers struggle enough as it is, no one wants land near a mine. It's time to cut out coal!

The last thing we need in this state and country is anymore CSG mines and to want to wreck anymore land for this disgraceful, pointless short term money making scheme is an outrage and must be stopped

I strongly object to the proposed development of a coal seam gas field in this area. It's a no brainer. It mustn't go ahead. On behalf of my children I have to make this submission. May common sense and foresight prevail.

I support the wilderness society in protecting our environment from the corporate elites!

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/

- See more at: https://www.wilderness.org.au/final-push-pilliga#sthash.aYlAHd9u.dpuf

I oppose the proposal to develop more CSG - on environmental grounds, in particular its potential to destroy the Great Artesian Basin, aquifers and other water sources in the area. Also, recent surveys in the Narrabri region show that a great majority of the people who live in that area don't want CSG development. But my objection in this submission is on economic grounds. Economically, the only possible use for CSG is to fill in the gap for solar and wind energy. This is based on the notion that CSG is less-polluting than other fossil fuels. However, the embedded energy in CSG infrastructure makes this assumption questionable. Other countries in the world are experiencing downturns in CSG sales, because it is economically unsound to use it. So Australia's present need for top-up energy for its solar and wind plants is quite unusual. But this begs the question to some extent - for there are other ways to supply energy when the sun's not shining and the wind's not blowing. In Australia we already have hydro electricity and the potential to develop more. Also, battery technology is at a stage where it can be employed economically - and this technology is still developing. This is not simply the technology designed by Tesla. There is also, for example, Redflow's grid-scale Large Scale Battery (LSB). All this, of course, demands a commitment from government to embrace alternative energy sources and to abandon using fossil fuels. But, the main point is, that already conditions exist within Australia that make it unnecessary to develop any more CSG wells. Alternative energy storage strategies are already available and they will only become more efficient and economic as their development continues.

Please do not set about destroying The Pilliga. It is a unique area of All steal Ia hi how should beprese ed.