The coal seam gas issue is newsworthy – it’s a fact that farmers, townsfolk, conservationists, greenies and scientists are prepared to fight what has to be the most insidious and dangerous of the mining industries that are besieging this country.

Scrutiny is long overdue. 

Our local hotspot in the Pilliga State Forest presents compelling evidence for opposing the CSG industry, and as many a local farmer would be quick to point out, the area has been producing such evidence since gas exploration began over a decade ago. 

There’s the benefit of domestic hindsight in Queensland’s Darling Downs region where communities are all but ruined. Well known too is the withering effect of gas mining across vast swathes of North America.

I’ve been to the Pilliga several times now. I’ve seen the drilling rigs of Santos in operation and witnessed the produced water in open skip bins – it emits a smell that is simply unbelievable. 

Wherever greater volumes of produced water are spilled, forest by the hectare is turned stone dead. 

Along with an independent photo/journalistic team I’ve been working with, I’ve been refused entry to a meeting hosted by Santos at the Narrabri RSL, their PR people citing the information sought was available through “other channels”.

I’ve flown over the area extensively and witnessed the tell-tale tracks, pipelines and drilling pads beginning to creep across the forest. 

The waste water holding facilities are being massively augmented with huge ponds just 25km south of the town – a sure sign of what’s to come for the region. 

While there are about 30 wells today, Santos’ plans have been fast-tracked by the NSW overnment for 850.

Recent reports in The Leader and The Sydney Morning Herald  tell that uranium has been detected at 20 times the accepted levels in Pilliga aquifers. While the type of uranium is unspecified, CSG industries claim the produced water is safe regardless of what chemicals are used in the drilling fluids. 

This speaks nothing, of course, for the potential contamination of the aquifers as the drilling is carried out and the known 7 per cent of 

well casings experiencing failures immediately following installation.

Despite the threat to the Great Artesian Basin, the very existence of this industry is still a mystery to so many people. 

It’s a complicated issue, far outside the scope of this correspondence, but at this point I wish to transfer my letter into an open invitation for our federal member, Barnaby Joyce to explain things. 

As the Minister for Agriculture in the Abbott government and the Deputy Leader of the Nationals, I feel he is ideally placed to address the following questions. 

Nationals members in the region – Kevin Anderson, Mark Coulton, Kevin Humphries and Troy Grant for example – this might also include you.

1. With all the local constituent concerns, protests by farmers, a history of toxic spills, and just last month, the discovery of excessive uranium levels up to 20 times the safe limit, why did your state Nationals counterpart Andrew Stoner see it fit to seek the fast-track approval of Santos’ proposed 850-well project a mere two days after reports of the contamination were made known? It is understood Mr  Stoner is infuriated by all the opposition.

2. Santos was reportedly the largest sponsor for the National Party at the last election. Is this true? Isn’t this flying in the face of your constituency’s concerns? I read that you are risking a rift with the Coalition as concern over CSG rises. Will you take it that far?

3. There has been some discussion in the major dailies concerning your purchasing of Pilliga properties in 2006 and 2008. Gas exploration was under way from 2001 yet you claim to have had no knowledge of the CSG potential when you purchased the land – if any people in this country know the dealings of the nature we’re discussing here, it’s you guys. 

You claim Santos doesn’t want to drill on your property, but on your neighbour’s. This is in spite of the fact the drilling risks occur underground to a depth of over 1000 metres and said risks do not acknowledge property boundaries.

What’s the real agenda when a person of your farming roots purchases “mongrel” country in a future mining zone?

I and many others in this region would like to know your answers on these questions. We look forward to hearing them. 

I am heartened by the reality of this enterprise being thrown up in a sharper light. Corruption is one word that springs to mind. Ignorance is another. 

I encourage everybody to find out more and act. 

The destruction of our land and water is what is at stake, with barely a shred of profit to return to our coffers. 

The Pilliga’s fate is not sealed as yet, but remember, the Liverpool Plains and the Gloucester Valley are next.