Media Release

KAP Federal Member for Kennedy Bob Katter has again introduced laws to put a moratorium on coal seam gas aquifer drilling after his previous bid was voted down by both major parties in mid-2012.

Mr Katter’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Moratorium on Aquifer Drilling Connected with Coal Seam Gas Extraction) Bill 2013 places a two-year moratorium on aquifer drilling for coal seam gas extraction.

Mr Katter told Parliament today of reports that some 18,000 wells had already been agreed to by the Queensland Government – but even that may not be enough to make the three liquefaction plants in Gladstone economically viable, according to media reports.

“And all of these wells are going down in the very productive agricultural areas of Queensland, not in the bad-land areas where no one is going to give a damn.”

Mr Katter warned of the potentially catastrophic social and economic costs of CSG aquifer drilling contaminating the Great Artesian Basin, the lifeblood of Australia’s cattle and sheep industries, which produce about one-third of Australia’s agricultural export earnings and tens of thousands of jobs.

“If the underground aquifer was to be contaminated, or if it was to run down to a level where we could not economically extract water, then all of those industries would be impacted,” Mr Katter said.

Meanwhile, Australia’s gas industry was almost completely foreign-owned, added Mr Katter.

“So what will Australia get out of it? Clearly, one of the things we are going to get out of it is contaminated aquifers.”

Mr Katter said he expected the support of the crossbenchers on his legislation for a 24-month coal seam gas aquifer drilling moratorium.

“And we want every landholder to ask their local federal politicians why they did not vote for a moratorium last year,” he said.

“Is it more important to make foreign corporations rich than to protect the future of our landholders and contamination of our water?

“There’s no money in it for Australia but I suspect there’s lots of money in it for the ALP-LNP corporations.”