Texas based fracking company Black Mountain has plans to frack the Kimberley, starting with 20 gas wells.
Now we have the chance to let the WA EPA know that this fracking plan is totally inappropriate. We can also let them know what should be included in their assessment of this damaging proposal.
It’s absolutely critical that the EPA hears that WA residents are not happy with the plan to frack the precious Kimberley.
You have until midnight on September 1st to submit a comment to the EPA.
The company plans to frack each well up to 50 times, using 40 million litres of water per well. They plan to drill the 20 wells across 10 different sites in the Shire of Derby-West Kimberley, to a depth of between 2km - 4km below the ground. Their plan also involves clearing 109 hectare of native vegetation and bushland to create access tracks, build accommodation camps and fracking operation sites including toxic wastewater storage ponds and flaring pits. These activities are expected to span over a seven year period.
This is an exploration program - meaning it is just the start of the company’s much bigger plans to expand gasfields across the Kimberley!
If Black Mountain’s full plans go ahead to extract 900 terajoules of gas per day, they could require thousands of frack wells.
Time to let the EPA know - we don’t want the Kimberley industrialised and fracked!
Have your say by following this link to the EPA Consultation site.
Some tips to make it quick and easy for you:
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Steps:
- Follow this link to the EPA Consultation Page: Valhalla Gas Exploration and Appraisal Program – Environmental Scoping Document
- Enter your name and email address. You can leave the ‘Organisation’ box blank.
- Add your submission either by typing directly in the box or uploading a Word or PDF document.
- Tick the box at the bottom, then click ‘Next’
- Click ‘Submit Response’
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Some points you may like add in your response:
Note: If you have a link to the region, we suggest mentioning if you're a resident, landcarer, teacher, Traditional Custodian, tourism operator etc.
Recommendations for the EPA's Scoping Document for the 'Valhalla' fracking project in the Kimberley:
- The promised implementation of the actions from the 2018 WA Fracking Inquiry is not complete, including those actions which directly relate to the EPA. The EPA should not progress any fracking related assessment until all actions are implemented by the government.
- In their latest reports, the International Energy Agency and IPCC clearly and unequivocally stated that NO new coal, oil or gas provinces or fields should be opened if we are to avoid the worst impacts of global heating.
- The current Black Mountain/Bennett Resources Kimberley fracking proposal ('Valhalla') should be rejected outright. The only appropriate outcome of this assessment is that the EPA recommends against it and the Minister refuses to approve it.
However, if assessment of the proposal continues, the following should be included in the EPA’s Environmental Scoping Document:
- The latest climate change modelling, including extreme weather events and flooding, incorporated into all aspects of the EPA’s review.
- Climate related impacts on all environmental factors, from scope 1, 2 & 3 greenhouse gas emissions (including estimated fugitive emissions) from the proposal over its lifetime.
- Consultation with and studies into the significance to Traditional Custodian groups in the area of the impacts on fauna, flora and vegetation (eg. bush food and medicine trees).
- Full accounting of potential fugitive emissions (e.g. methane) from drilling and fracking operations, including via well integrity failure, faults and fractures, and induced seismic activity.
- Identify how flowback water will be safely stored, treated and disposed of with regard to risks to human and environmental health.
- Identify how contamination of surface and/or groundwater by flowback water will be mitigated.
- Identify how overflow of wastewater ponds from flooding/extreme rainfall events will be mitigated.
- Identify how flooding risks due to heavy rains particularly in wet season will be mitigated.
- Assess the cumulative impacts on the environment, health and communities.
* Please ensure you submit your comment to the EPA before midnight on Wednesday 1 September 2021.
To read the full EPA document, click here.
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