Scott receives promising CSG message from Garrett
28-July-2010
Source: Bruce Scott, MP -
Federal LNP Member for Maranoa Bruce Scott has received a promising response from Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett after he wrote last month expressing grave concerns about the extraction of coal seam gas.
Mr Scott called on the Minister to withhold support for the CSG extraction process until science could conclusively confirm that the aquifers of the Great Artesian Basin would not be significantly impacted upon.
He said the Minister’s response showed promise for federal intervention.
“Minister Garrett’s surprisingly prompt reply to my letter noted that under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, he as the Minister had the powers to make decisions about CSG projects if they had significant impact on the environment,” Mr Scott said.
“Minister Garrett noted that the decisions made on current proposals by Santos and British Gas could have ramifications for future projects.
“I hope that this means a big step will be taken in utilising federal legislation for the protection of our Great Artesian Basin aquifers and to help prevent problems like the recent concerns over Cougar Energy,” he said.
Mr Scott also said he would be calling on the incoming Minister for Environment after the 21 August federal election to establish an independent panel of scientists to assess proposals for CSG and UCG projects.
“I believe any projects that involve coal seam gas extraction and underground coal gasification should be peer-reviewed by an independent panel of scientists at the same time that it is referred to the Minister for review. This way we can truly ensure an impartial, objective decision is made on a project’s environmental impact,” he said.
