Friday, May 11

Coal seam gas plans for St Peters never had permission to go ahead




Stop coal seam gas rally, Sydney, May 1. Photo: Peter Boyle


Residents of St Peters have been shocked to discover the company that planned to drill for coal seam gas (CSG) in their community never had a formal land access agreement with the owners of the proposed site.

This news comes just days after Marrickville Council voted unanimously to prohibit CSG on the site in question as a condition of the council issued development renewal. The St Peters site is owned by Dial A Dump and is home to a waste and recycling facility. The decision made by Marrickville Council on Tuesday 8 May permits Dial A Dump to continue operations provided it does not allow any CSG activity on the site.

Christopher Biggs is a solicitor for Dial A Dump, he said today: “Coal seam gas is not on the company’s radar.

“We have not got an agreement … and we have not had an agreement.”

Jacinta Green is a local resident and president of Stop CSG Sydney, a campaigning group formed by concerned inner-west residents. She said: “For the past 18 months, Dart Energy has continually led us to believe that drilling a coal seam gas well in the Dial A Dump Site at St Peters was a done deal. At the very first meeting between Dart Energy and what at the time was known as Sydney Residents against Coal Seam Gas, we were led to believe that drilling at St Peters was just weeks away from commencing.

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Green Left Weekly

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