A move by a local council to try to block a potential future coal seam gas (CSG) well in Sydney’s inner west has ignited questions about the powers of local councils with regard to CSG developments.
In the latest development, the council of Marrickville last Tuesday voted to renew permission for recycling firm Dial-a-Dump to use a site which it currently operates off Holland Street in St. Peters, a residential inner western suburb of Sydney.
But in a move that could test the extent of the legal powers of councils across New South Wales, it inserted a clause in the development application banning mining on the site – a move that follows reports that the site was being considered by mining firm Dart Energy for possible CSG exploration.
In addition to the anti-CSG clause, the council said it would write to the NSW government requesting it not renew Dart Energy’s licence to sink an exploratory well in St. Peters.
Greens councillor Max Phillips says the anti-CSG clause was included not just because of environmental fears associated with CSG but also because the site is zoned for industrial use, which he says prohibits its use as a mining site.
Engineering Souce
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