The Basin Sustainability Alliance (BSA) is calling for answers from the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) when industry bodies converge to Brisbane for the annual APPEA conference this week.

BSA Chairman Lee McNicholl believes it is timely to ask these important question once again.

“There are still so many questions and issues unanswered and no doubt the conference will only address the supposed economic benefits of this environmentally damaging industry.

The BSA believes this conference is the perfect venue for APPEA to explain to Queensland taxpayers and rural landholders the following unclear, economic benefits” Mr McNicholl stated.

  1. How the recent 11-12.2% plus hike in rural business electricity tariffs benefits struggling rural Queenslanders. Clearly this increase is largely a result of the CSG-LNG industry doubling domestic gas prices for power generation as well as massively increasing their electricity demand to pump and then freeze CSG at Gladstone? (see Qld. Competition Authority Determination)
  2. Why Queensland’s estimated Petroleum and Gas royalties for 2015-16 are a pathetic record low of $33M compared to previous projections of hundreds of millions?
  3. Why the P&G industry should be allowed to take unlimited quantities of “associated water” from the Great Artesian Basin aquifers, while all other users are licenced in an attempt to sustainably manage rural Queensland’s most valuable resource, it’s underground water?
  4. How pumping out 3,000 Gigalitres, the equivalent to six Sydney Harbours from the GAB over the next 50 years represents ecologically sustainable development?
  5. Why Surat Basin towns have been economically gutted with real estate becoming unsaleable even with mortgagees in possession, reducing reserves to 40% of their properties original sale price. Typical of this disaster is the recent attempted auction sale of ten properties in Miles. No sales occurred?
  6. Why the industry continues to use out of town camps for their “FIFO” workers thereby making a minimal contribution to local towns which are being devastated by this “segregationist” policy?

Mr McNicholl concluded by saying the BSA’s reason for existence is unashamedly summed up in our website address which is www.notatanycost.com.

“As BSA remains unconvinced the CSG-LNG industry can proceed “not at any cost”, perhaps APPEA might like to address our concerns in the environmentally unaffected plush confines of their Brisbane conference” Mr McNicholl said.