WA fracking moratorium bad for investment – industry
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (Appea) has slammed a decision by the Western Australian government to ban hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in the South West, Peel and Perth metropolitan regions, as well as imposing a moratorium throughout the rest of Western Australia.
“The government recognises the need to protect the state's environment from risks associated with extracting petroleum products using fracking,” Premier Mark McGowan said on Tuesday.
“We appreciate there is a level of community concern around fracking in Western Australia, which is why we are commissioning an independent scientific inquiry.”
The inquiry will be chaired by the Environmental Protection Authority chairperson Tom Hatton, and will use scientific and historical evidence to assess the level of risk associated with fracking and to outline regulatory mechanisms to identify or minimise these risks.
“The government's ban and moratorium will have a major impact on unconventional oil and gas because it is highly unlikely these resources can be developed without fracking,” said Mines and Petroleum Minister Bill Johnston on Tuesday.
“We will not compromise the environment, agriculture, groundwater and public health in Western Australia. To give certainty to the community, we are implementing the ban and moratorium through delegated legislation."
However, Appea COO for Western Australia, Stedman Ellis, said that a previous fracking inquiry by the Western Australian Legislative Council’s Environment and Public Affairs Committee had already found that fracking posed negligible risk.
“The Environment and Public Affairs Committee considered all of the evidence and listened to all sides of the debate before unanimously concluding, after a two-year inquiry, that any concerns about fracking can be addressed through regulation and ongoing monitoring,” Ellis said.
“The committee’s findings echoed those of more than a dozen other inquiries in Australia and countless independent reviews and studies which all confirmed that fracking is safe.”
Ellis pointed out that more than 600 wells had been fracked in Western Australia in the past 55 years with no evidence of environmental harm.
“Western Australia does not need another fracking inquiry. What it desperately needs is new jobs, investment and royalties to help repair the state budget.”
Ellis said more than A$380-million worth of investment in new onshore gas projects had stalled since Labor imposed a moratorium on fracking. One company was now looking to Canada rather than risking its future in Western Australia.
He said politically-motivated bans and restrictions not only damaged the onshore gas industry, but they also undermined Western Australia’s reputation as a safe place to invest and do business.
“The facts clearly show that fracking is safe - so it’s likely this inquiry, like all the others before it, will conclude that any risks can be managed with proper regulation,” Ellis said.
“It is vital, therefore, that this new inquiry report back to the government as quickly as possible and that it results in the removal of the fracking moratorium.”
The Chamber of Minerals and Energy (CME) has also warned that the moratorium would hurt Western Australia’s international reputation as an attractive place to invest.
Acting deputy CEO Kane Moyle said that the government’s plan to establish an inquiry was unnecessary.
“There is no environmental, public health or safety justification to ban hydraulic fracturing. A comprehensive two-year parliamentary inquiry into hydraulic fracturing in 2015 found the current regulatory framework provides sufficient safeguards to the environment,” he said.
“Despite comprehensive multiple studies in four States – Victoria, South Australia, the Northern Territory and Western Australia – all reaching the same conclusion: the government is embarking on another costly inquiry.
“This decision threatens the reputation of the resources industry, as well as jobs and economic prosperity across the entire state.”
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