Santos submitted an Environmental Impact Statement for their Narrabri Gas Project on February 1, claiming to be able to supply 50% of NSW gas. It is expected to be released for submissions from the public in the coming weeks. The Narrabri community has been promised $120M for community projects and initiatives.

Santos media release

In a national first, the Andrews Labor Government today announced a permanent ban on the exploration and development of all onshore unconventional gas in Victoria, including hydraulic fracturing (‘fracking’) and coal seam gas. Continue reading →

The weekly Friday vigil outside Santos office in Sydney has been moved to Martin Place from 11am to 1pm. After two weeks the Knitting Nannas and others have found that more people in this location want to engage with them and learn more. So come along and have a chat. Some of the Knitting Nannas went to the Knitting Nanna’s conference in Chinchilla last weekend so they have the latest information on what is happening in Queensland.

Court decides Santos can treat more than 1 million litres of water a day at their waste water facility in The Pilliga without a full development consent and environment impact statement. What other business can do that?

Please read the following

EDO’s media release

Peter Hannam’s report in the Sydney Morning Herald

Wikipedia on Judge Tim Moore

A decision on People of the Plains vs Santos will be delayed until early August. People of the Plains is seeking an injunction in the NSW Land and Environment Court to prevent Santos from developing its ‘Leewood’ coal seam gas (CSG) wastewater treatment facility without first undertaking the proper planning and environmental assessment.

Warrumbungle National Park in Central Western NSW was declared Australia’s first Dark Sky Park by the International Dark Sky Association on 5 July. However, if Santos’ Narrabri Gas Project goes ahead, gas flares and other infrastructure could jeopardise the dark sky qualities at the Siding Spring Observatory.

Planning Minister Rob Stokes said the park’s dark sky qualities will be ‘protected with $100,000 in funding to control light pollution through implementation of updated planning policies. A new Dark Sky Planning Guideline has also been developed with the Australian Astronomical Observatory as part of the NSW Government’s review of state planning policies.’

More information about Dark Sky Park announcement at Research School of Astrology & Astrophysics, Australian National University

Boggabri coal mine, NSW – Beyond Gas & Coal Image Library

New research quantifies, for the first time ever, the size of coal mine pits or ‘final voids’ which will remain unfilled in NSW once the coal mining boom ends, which combined form an area greater than Sydney Harbour, with at least 45 voids planned or approved for the state, comprising 6,050 hectares.

Key environment groups are calling on the NSW government to require mining companies backfill the voids and properly rehabilitate land, a policy that has existed in the United States since the 1970s. Continue reading →

Wide Open Sky is a documentary on preparing children to sing in a big concert in Coonamble. It is screening at limited cinemas now.

The children are from different schools in northern NSW, including Lightning Ridge and Brewarina. They meet at a camp in Baradine for three days for initial instruction, practice on their own for three months then come together for the concert. This is an annual program called Moorambilla Voices.

In 2016 the choir will sing in Sydney in July and in Dubbo in September.

Koala in a tree outside the Santos Sydney office

Protests were held outside the Santos offices in Adelaide, Brisbane, Sydney and Narrabri on Wednesday 4th May to correspond with their AGM in Adelaide. The protests were well attended by people calling on the company to abandon their CSG projects.

Santos shares dropped 9%. Santos has written down most of the value of the Narrabri coal seam gas project. According to Matt Chambers in the Australian, the work program is to slow down due to ‘community opposition, government hurdles and field underperformance’.

David Paull and Naomi Tarrant were arrested on three charges in The Pilliga and released on bail of $1000. They had locked onto a car with no wheels outside the Santos Depot. David, an ecologist, resigned from the NSW Department of Environment in 2014. He wrote an article in the Independent Australia Wizards of Bridge Street, which explains NSW’s magical mining approval process.

Protesters in NSW say they will continue the fight until the Narrabri CSG project is closed.