MINING magnate Gina Rinehart's company will drill for gas in Western
Victoria as soon as the current moratorium on fracking is lifted.
FOI documents, released today by The Greens, reveal Lakes Oil - the mining company 18.6 per cent owned by Ms Rinehart is ready to explore gas in Moriac and Brucknell despite the risk of contamination of soil and ground water.
"A spill could contaminate soils and surface or groundwater, the extent of which depends on the volume of any spilled materials," the operations plans states.
"A spill has the potential to impede the growth of pasture and injure or kill wildlife or stock through the direct ingestion of spilled materials.
"There is potential for minor contamination of water running off the surface of the drill pad after rainfall, or groundwater through run off from the drill pad or leaching of chemicals stored on site if control measures are not put in place."
The documents cite the Coalition Government's current moratorium on the hydraulic fracking extraction method as standing in the way of its exploration.
Greens Victorian Leader Greg Barber said all Ms Rinehart needed was a "signal to start".
"One operations plan is for a grazing property in Moriac, near Torquay. It is for exploration drilling, with more wells planned if commercial quantities of gas are found," Mr Barber said.
"The second plan is for a cattle farm near Brucknell, between Port Campbell and Warrnambool, which Lakes Oil expects to produce gas during the exploration stage.
"The potential impacts of both operations include contamination of aquifers, which the Lakes Oil document describes as 'extremely difficult to predict', meaning that they can't predict whether or not it will happen and once drilling starts they can't do anything to prevent it."
Friends of the Earth spokesman Cam Walker said the exploration plans were concerning.
"Lakes Oil are always very upbeat about there being no risk to aquifers as a result of their activity," he said.
"These documents show there is a real risk of contamination to ground and surface water".
Lakes Oil executive chairman Rob Annells told The Weekly Times last month that fracking was perfectly safe.
The gas wells used by Lakes Oil were up to 1km below the aquifer, making water contamination "virtually impossible".
"The main thing we use (in fracking) is liquid nitrogen which is in earth and in the air . . . and a gel which is used for ice cream," he said.
"Are people going to stop eating ice cream if they're worried about the chemicals used?"
http://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/article/2013/11/13/589082_politics-news.html
FOI documents, released today by The Greens, reveal Lakes Oil - the mining company 18.6 per cent owned by Ms Rinehart is ready to explore gas in Moriac and Brucknell despite the risk of contamination of soil and ground water.
"A spill could contaminate soils and surface or groundwater, the extent of which depends on the volume of any spilled materials," the operations plans states.
"A spill has the potential to impede the growth of pasture and injure or kill wildlife or stock through the direct ingestion of spilled materials.
"There is potential for minor contamination of water running off the surface of the drill pad after rainfall, or groundwater through run off from the drill pad or leaching of chemicals stored on site if control measures are not put in place."
The documents cite the Coalition Government's current moratorium on the hydraulic fracking extraction method as standing in the way of its exploration.
Greens Victorian Leader Greg Barber said all Ms Rinehart needed was a "signal to start".
"One operations plan is for a grazing property in Moriac, near Torquay. It is for exploration drilling, with more wells planned if commercial quantities of gas are found," Mr Barber said.
"The second plan is for a cattle farm near Brucknell, between Port Campbell and Warrnambool, which Lakes Oil expects to produce gas during the exploration stage.
"The potential impacts of both operations include contamination of aquifers, which the Lakes Oil document describes as 'extremely difficult to predict', meaning that they can't predict whether or not it will happen and once drilling starts they can't do anything to prevent it."
Friends of the Earth spokesman Cam Walker said the exploration plans were concerning.
"Lakes Oil are always very upbeat about there being no risk to aquifers as a result of their activity," he said.
"These documents show there is a real risk of contamination to ground and surface water".
Lakes Oil executive chairman Rob Annells told The Weekly Times last month that fracking was perfectly safe.
The gas wells used by Lakes Oil were up to 1km below the aquifer, making water contamination "virtually impossible".
"The main thing we use (in fracking) is liquid nitrogen which is in earth and in the air . . . and a gel which is used for ice cream," he said.
"Are people going to stop eating ice cream if they're worried about the chemicals used?"
http://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/article/2013/11/13/589082_politics-news.html
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