Coal seam gas company Blue Energy has agreed to scale back its Bowen Basin gas project following a legal challenge by Environmental Advocacy in Central Queensland (EnvA-CQ).
Blue Energy has agreed to slash the number of gas wells from 530 to 117, a 77% reduction. It has also massively reduced the development’s footprint from 31,500ha to 7,630ha, a reduction of about 80%. The company now plans to develop just one petroleum lease, rather than three as originally planned.
The company and Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation (DETSI) have also agreed to more stringent conditions that will help protect endangered greater gliders, ornamental snakes, yakka skinks and other wildlife, and to do more to protect precious water resources.
EnvA-CQ took legal action to address concerns about the DETSI’s failure to assess the project’s impacts. In particular, the group was concerned about the department’s:
- failure to address a substantial error in gas production estimates. Blue Energy’s original application underestimated the amount of gas to be extracted by 18,800%. The department failed to detect the error and therefore failed to consider the subsequent greenhouse gas emissions before giving the project the green light,
- failure to require on-the-ground surveys of biodiversity impacts for two of the three petroleum leases in the original application, and
- failure to adequately assess groundwater impacts and to set adequate monitoring conditions.
EnvA-CQ was represented throughout the matter by the Environmental Defenders Office, the nation’s leading public-interest environmental law firm.
EnvA-CQ Director Dr Coral Rowston said:
“We are very pleased to have secured this agreement with Blue Energy and the Queensland Government.
“Our Central Queensland community cares deeply about our local environment and the amazing natural assets our region provides.
“We feel like we have had a win in helping to protect our environment from both habitat clearing and the impacts of climate change.
“We would have preferred the project was refused, but we are very pleased to have achieved an agreed outcome that is much better than the project that was approved.
“We stepped up to challenge the approval of the project by the Queensland Government when it was clear there wasn’t a thorough assessment of the environmental impacts.
“It is critical that decision-makers properly consider our local threatened species, the Great Barrier Reef and our lifestyle when making decisions about climate destroying coal and gas proposals.
“Our hope from here is that the Queensland Government will ensure that future assessments are based on detailed environmental assessments, and not just a desk-top analysis based on the promise of doing further investigations later.
“Our sincere thanks to the Environmental Defenders Office’s legal team for securing a good outcome for Central Queenslanders and our environment.”
EDO Managing Lawyer Revel Pointon said:
“This appeal shows the importance of communities having the legal right to engage in public-interest litigation to hold governments and companies to account to ensure better environmental outcomes in Queensland.
“The strengthened environmental protections won by our client would not have been achieved were it not for our client’s bravery in appealing the decision.”
EnvA - CQ 