All over Australia, landowners are fighting to keep mining companies off their property. From the Darling Downs to the Liverpool Plains, farmers have been locking out coal seam gas extraction companies…
Understandably, farmers get worried when they think their water is under threat.
Phil Schubert
There are many good reasons why the general public, and in particular farmers, are concerned about coal seam gas (CSG) extraction. There are major gaps in our knowledge about the future impacts of CSG…
It could take years to learn more about the impacts of CSG, but can we afford to wait?
AAP/Alan Porritt
Independent MP Tony Windsor has said he won’t back the government’s Mineral Resources Rent Tax unless more is done to make coal seam gas mining sustainable. He has called for $200-400 million annually…
The Queensland port city of Gladstone has been in the news for all the wrong reasons lately. Fish and other marine life have been infected by a strange parasite that seemed to make the leap to humans…
Fishing has been banned in Gladstone while authorities try to determine what’s killing marine species.
robstephaustralia
Several individuals have required medical attention after a mystery disease appeared to spread to humans from fish in waters near Gladstone, Queensland. Fishing bans are currently in place and local residents…
Coal seam gas mining can create 5 million litres of “produced” water per well.
Jeremy Buckingham MLC
Last week, the Federal Government’s National Water Commission (NWC) delivered its third biannual assessment of the national water initiative (NWI). And for the first time, the NWC is looking seriously…
The debate about coal seam gas drilling in Australia is intensifying, amid calls from The Greens to further investigate its emissions profile. So what is the emissions profile of coal seam gas? How does…
Farmers are worried about their land and water, but governments want their gas.
AAP
Food security and energy security are paramount to the survival and growth of Australia. Food security so that we may feed ourselves (and a hungry world), and energy security for transport, heating, lighting…
Debate is intensifying over the extraction of coal seam gas, particularly in NSW and Queensland. Farmers are protesting over safety concerns and threats to the country’s food security. The Greens and the…
The movie Gasland galvanised the public on the dangers of fracking.
Gasland
Fracking. It’s a hotbed of controversy that spans our increasingly energy-hungry globe. The French have turned their back on it. Permanently. And now the NSW government has temporarily frozen the use of…
Is all the fuss over coal seam gas warranted?
Lock the Gate/Flickr
In collaboration with The Drum, The Conversation is giving statements made by public figures the fine-tooth-comb treatment they deserve. Today, a new energy source, and its dangers: “Coal seam gas is a…
There’s more to natural gas than Gasland.
lilicomanche/flickr
Senator Christine Milne has declared coal seam gas to be “a disaster for Australia,” and there’s much concern in the community about its effect on the environment. Some of this concern stems from horror…
Coal seam gas drilling exposes us to chemicals we know nothing about.
AAP
Coal seam gas is indeed a potential disaster if present attitudes and lack of regulatory control prevail. An important part of public health is to enact precautions based on potential impacts. The CSG…
Poor regulation overseas has set the stage for disaster.
AAP
The last week has seen the Australian coal seam gas (CSG) industry come under increasing scrutiny. Triggered by a gas explosion in the Darling Downs in Queensland, and legal action against BHP in the US…
Much coal seam gas water sits there going to waste.
SkyTruth/flickr
The Coal Seam Gas (CSG) industry constitutes an interesting opportunity for Australia. We could get a lot of positive things out of CSG. But it does produce a lot of “waste water”: if things go badly there…
Coal seam gas drilling threatens our most arable land.
«Jonny Boy»/flickr
Coal seam gas has been touted by some as the answer to our addiction to dirty coal. It’s marketed as a “transition fuel” that will ween us off fossil fuels as we move to renewable energy. But the process…
Australia could meet its Kyoto targets by replacing coal with natural gas.
AAP
In a coal-abundant nation trying to go green, coal seam gas drilling offers us a cleaner source of energy. But there is a draw back. Many coal seam wells will require fraccing and the community is concerned…