Dear Dr Hawke,
Thank you for the opportunity to briefly inform your inquiry into this
important issue. I conclude that your inquiry remains incomplete without
the proponent's own submission shouldering their burden of proof.
In the meantime, this submission strongly rejects unconventional mining,
including shale gas mining, and particularly the unproven methods of
hydraulic fracturing our 'fracking'.
As a health research officer in the Northern Territory, with an
agricultural family heritage, I am writing to you with a very deep and
genuine concern for the future health of our people; and the land,
water, air, plants and animals on which we all depend.
Despite endless and predictable reassurance from the industry,
unconventional gas extraction and associated 'fracking' techniques are
not safe nor free of inherent and systemic risks. These inherent risks
are now well documented, and are the subject of ongoing university
research world-wide (1). Moreover, as recently as two months ago,
Santos (the "leading ... company in the Northern Territory" (2)), were
revealed to have directly contaminated ground water reservoirs
(aquifers) in NSW with inevitable waste fluids (including uranium)
produced by the practice of hydraulic fracturing (3). The main-stream
discourse (4) now accepts inherent pollution cause by 'fracking' as a
normal and expected part of unconventional gas mining.
I am especially concerned about the threat of hydraulic fracturing and
unconventional mining in the Amadeus Basin (5) and I call upon the NT
government to fund further independent scientific research assessing the
impacts of hydraulic fracturing. This research should draw on both
international and domestic experiences, with a specific concluding
reference to our unique Northern Territory situation. Furthermore, in
the context of our dangerously changing climate due to fossil fuel
extraction, I remind the NT Government, of their moral obligation to
cease all taxpayer funded subsidies/incentives relating to such mining
companies.
As the Commissioner, you are no doubt aware of the Precautionary
Principle and how it informs industry regulation (6). I am referring
you to the Precautionary Principle in general terms, although
specifically I note that this principle "shifts the burden of proof
from the general public to the initiator of that public health or
environmental risk" (7). In this light, I would therefore consider your
inquiry incomplete and inadequate, were it to not contain a
transparent submission from the proponents (the proposed gas mining
companies) which proves beyond a reasonable doubt, that hydraulic
fracturing does not present a risk. As yet I am not aware of any such
proof, and would be happy to have you refer me to such a document, with
sufficient opportunity for public scrutiny. Until then, I support
community calls for a full moratorium on all hydraulic fracking
activities until all risks are assessed independently, and safety can
be proven.
I trust this submission adds to the overwhelming concerns shared
throughout various sectors of our Northern Territory and Australian
communities. I consent to publicly displaying my submission and name,
and I would gladly support any aspect of my submission with further
references as requested by the Commissioner.
Yours sincerely,
Daniel Peterson
(1) http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/groundwater-contamination-may-end-the-gas-fracking-boom/
(2) http://www.santos.com/our-activities/western-australia-northern-territory/amadeus-basin.aspx
(3) https://www.mja.com.au/insight/2014/17/gas-mining-health-concerns
(4) http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/01/05/some-states-confirm-water-pollution-from-drilling/4328859/
(5) http://www.alicespringsnews.com.au/2014/03/19/the-big-dollars-of-oil-and-gas-in-the-centre/
(6) http://www.edo.org.au/edosa/research/david%20cole%20on%20precautionary%20principle.doc
(7) http://www.silentspring.org/breast-cancer-and-environment/fact-sheets/precautionary-principle