The grassroots ‘Lock the Gate’ campaign against coal and coal seam gas mining has mobilised the community in a way not seen since the anti-war movement in the 70’s.
For me the issue of coal seam gas has become personal and I have been involved in this campaign from the early days. When I worked as a policy advisor to Cate Faehrmann in the NSW parliament in late 2010, we uncovered plans to drill for gas at St Peters and I remember helping to organise the first town hall meeting. From that meeting came the origins of the Sydney Residents Against Coal Seam Gas group and not long after that I attended a meeting at Broke in the Hunter Valley where the idea of the Lock the Gate Alliance as a formal entity was born.
The movement now has broad appeal with more than 130 groups across NSW and Queensland and at a guestimate around 10,000 collective members and supporters. Thousands of landholders have agreed to ‘Lock the Gate’, a symbol that has proven powerful in combatting the drilling companies. It might only be a small sign but it has a clear message that goes something like this:
“Beware gas companies, I’m informed and I have friends. I if you come here I’m going to tell everyone in the neighborhood that you are around and if you keep trying we’ll probably organise a blockade that will cost you lots of money and time.”
Justin Field Blog
No comments:
Post a Comment