QGC seek approval to dump contaminated water in rivers

Queensland Gas Corporation (QGC) is seeking to have the Queensland Government water down environmental approvals for the disposal of contaminated coal seam gas (CSG) water and to build more evaporation ponds to increase its brine storage.

In fact, they are seeking Queensland Government approval to amend their environmental authority (EA) to allow them to dispose of more CSG water into the Murray Darling Basin at Wieambilla Creek, near Chinchilla. 

Six Degrees spokesperson and Friends of the Earth campaigner Drew Hutton said these developments showed the inadequacy of the State Government's regulatory approach.

He also highlighted that many external experts have expressed doubts that the gas companies can meet the necessary safe environmental standards at an acceptable cost.

According to Mr Hutton

The State Government's much-vaunted 'adaptive management' approach to regulating the coal seam gas industry means little more than the Government watering down sections of the environmental authorities when the companies don't want to meet the standards.

As more and more water gets extracted from the coal seam, QGC is having trouble dealing effectively with it, so they are wanting the Government to amend their environmental authority to enable easier solutions.

Mr Hutton said an expert in waste water management, Dr Konstantinos Athanasiadis, told the recent Future Gas conference in Brisbane that he did not believe existing technology would enable the CSG water to reach the regulatory standard for discharge into waterways at an acceptable cost.

According to Mr Hutton: 

If treated to an inferior level, then discharges of CSG water to inland waterways would not only disrupt water-flow regimes in those streams but also would potentially contaminate them.

He said Dr Athanasiadis also made it clear there was also no feasible solution to the problem of disposing of the one million tonnes of salt brought to the surface, other than landfill.

QGC Response

In an article published by the Courier Mail, an unnamed company spokesperson admitted that they are still seeking a viable commercial plan to dispose of brine and salt extracted in CSG mining.

According to the article, the spokesperson for QGC said: 

This work requires some changes to our environmental authorities, including for temporary discharge of treated water to surface waters while a pipeline is built.

Future operations for the LNG project will include water aggregation and brine ponds to enable water treatment to occur.

We are presently studying commercial applications for the use of brine and salt.

In other words, QGC  admits that it is still does not have a viable commercial plan to dispose of brine and salt extracted in CSG mining.

How this project was approved by both State and Federal Governments without a water management plan continues to baffle us.

Article published in the Courier Mail, April 22nd 2010. See the original article here.