Go ahead, we dare you

I wrote a poem after hearing about the latest decision on Bulga - it also applies to many other mining companies.

Go ahead, we dare you

We will make it hard

By holding up your work

If you drop your guard

Go ahead, we dare you

You’ll soon learn our goal

To make your dirty diggings

The most expensive coal

Go ahead, we dare you

As together we will stand

To make your fragile share price

The cheapest in the land

Go ahead, we dare you

We’ll put out the call

To banks and all investors

Ensuring that you fall

Go ahead, we dare you

We’ll wise up the nation

No coming to your aid

Or giving compensation

Go ahead, we dare you

Watch us rejoice and win

For what you plan to do

Is such a bloody sin.

Fight continues against CSG in NSW

The Green’s bill before the Legislative Council to prohibit coal seam gas in New South Wales was supported by the Labor Party with amendments, the Christian Democrat Party and the Animal Justice Party –with a vote of 16 for and 19 against.

Earlier it had been announced that the Shooters & Fishers Party were voting yes but during the debate Robert Brown was seen talking to LNP members. He then decided to be listed to speak and seemed to have a dummy spit about the earlier announcement that his party would vote yes. He said the SFP had a gas reservation policy to ensure an affordable domestic gas supply and that he would be voting no.

Bill to prohibit coal seam gas in NSW

I’m heading off to the NSW Parliament on Thursday 13 August as the Greens have a Bill in the Legislative Council to prohibit coal seam gas in New South Wales. The ALP have moved amendments to that Bill to give it a chance of passing with broad political support.

Lock the Gate is encouraging people to email members of the Upper House and to be there at 10am to show the community’s support for the bill.

Click here for more details. 

National Management of GAB

The Great Artesian Basin covers four states; NSW, Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory. What happens in one state can impact another and yet the states, using different criteria not a standard approach, decide where development can take place. Environmental studies for individual developments do not assess the impacts in other states, or the cumulative impacts on the whole GAB.

Similar to the Murray Darling River system which also covers four states, the water in the GAB has been exploited by successive state governments to fill the coffers with no regard for overall impacts. Without independent management the states bicker over water allocations for short term economic benefit, disregarding long term effects.

Risks to the GAB

Pilliga gas well

A paper published by the CSIRO in 2011 stated that ‘mining, manufacturing, and other industries use about 20% of all water consumed in Australia’. It recognised the fast growing mining industry, the risks it posed by discharging large quantities of water into the environment, and the resulting water management challenges.

Rob Banks’ outlines some of the risks to the Great Artesian Basin in an executive summary in his report on the Great Artesian Basin, published in December 2014.

Origins of the GAB’s Water

Since 1900 some of Australia’s and the world’s most respected scientists have argued about the origins of the water in the Great Artesian Basin. The common assumption was that any water taken out was replenished by rainfall.

Traditionally, the recharge for the GAB has been thought to be 30% of the basin, and that it was significant. The recently published information contained in this report shows clearly that effective recharge (>1 mm/yr) is only 6% of the GAB. (SoilFutures Report, p. 23)

Recent studies reveal that three theories apply to different sections of the basin and although it is replenished by rainfall it is at an alarmingly slow rate compared to the amount of water being taken out. The following are the three theories of the origins of the water in the GAB -

Rob Banks Researches the GAB

Coonamble NSW

Anne Kennedy, an advocate and campaigner for the protection of the Great Artesian Basin, was introduced to soil scientist Rob Banks by Penny Blatchford. Anne employed Rob to do a similar report to Penny’s, on the Petroleum Exploration Licence (PEL 238) which covered her property near Coonamble in the West Pilliga district.

Part of Penny’s and Anne’s PELs were on the Great Artesian Basin’s (GAB) recharge areas. Anne’s PEL covered part of the Coonamble lobe area, where artesian water is the only reliable water source. After completing Anne’s study, the NSW Artesian Bore Water Users Association commissioned Rob to study the recharge and discharge areas of the GAB in NSW and the potential risks from CSG.