Kimberley Region
The iconic Kimberley region has been identified as one of the most prospective regions in the world for shale and tight sands gas production, with an estimated 438 trillion cubic feet of gas within the onshore Canning Basin.
Although still at the early exploration stage, tens of thousands of wells could be drilled in the area if the industry goes to full production, changing the stunning Kimberley landscape forever.
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Fracking Gasfield Risks
In Western Australia the majority of unconventional gas is found in shale beds and tight sandstone rock strata, unlike Eastern Australia where most unconventional gas deposits are found in coal seams.
Shale and tight gasfields involve the industrialisation of entire landscapes with numerous closely spaced wells. Typical gasfields contain thousands of wells. Gasfields also require vast networks of access roads, gas pipelines, processing plants, compressor stations, and wastewater holding dams and treatment plants.
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Mid West & Wheatbelt Region
The northern Perth basin, a geological formation underlying the western parts of the Mid West and Wheatbelt of WA, has been identified by the gas industry as a priority target for exploitation. With over 270,000 petajoules of potential unconventional gas under 31 petroleum and exploration licences, there is interest from a host of companies, both local and international. Scroll down to read a specific overview for each area.
Exploration and production at small scale has been taking place for years, yet recently has seen a ramp up of activities, with over 15,000 square kilometres of land currently being targeted for oil & gas exploration. We know from experience that when the petroleum industry gets a foothold, they push forward creating widespread industrialisation. When the conventional gas or oil stops flowing, they will go back over a region with unconventional techniques like hydraulic fracture stimulation, or fracking, horizontal drilling and possible other techniques to extract the gas that’s trapped inside tight limestone or shale rock.
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