Betrayal of rural NSW Governments plan for gas industry blasted
Large swathes of north-western New South Wales will be off limits for gas exploration under a new state government plan, but a leading environment group says it is still a 'betrayal' of rural communities.
The long-awaited Future of Gas Statement outlines plans for the state's gas industry.
Twelve expired petroleum exploration licences, or PELS, cover 55,000 square kilometres of land from Moree in the north, through Narrabri and down to Coolah in the south.
“We have heard the concerns and questions from our regional communities around PELs and I can confirm today we are reducing the area of land available for gas exploration by 77 per cent," Deputy Premier and Minister for Resources John Barilaro said.
"The active PELs that remain will be to support the long-term future of the Narrabri Gas Project."
Supplied: NSW Government
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Land around the Liverpool Plains will be considered for gas development, prompting environmental group Lock the Gate's spokesperson, Georgina Woods, to describe the plan as a "betrayal of rural New South Wales".
"The deputy premier’s decision to expand coal seam gas is at odds with New South Wales’ commitment to carbon neutrality and makes the Liverpool Plains and Namoi Valley a sacrifice zone for the double whammy of Santos’s coal seam gas damage and the legacy of climate change," she said.
"Communities in Coonamble, Gilgandra, Moree and the Upper Hunter are spared from the spectre of coal seam gas, and the decision not to proceed with gas exploitation in the Far West is very welcome."
Gas exploration has also been ruled out in the far west of the state, near Wilcannia and Broken Hill.
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