OIL and gas giant Santos has again been forced to defend the use of a radioactive material in its drilling operations in the Pilliga Forest near Narrabri.
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The discovery of an unattended box containing the radioactive isotope Caesium-137 at a drill site earlier this year raised concerns among some local residents.
Cs-137, which is produced through nuclear fission, can be deadly at high exposure levels and has caused widespread contamination following the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
Revelations in the last week that AGL is also employing Cs-137 at its Gloucester project has prompted renewed calls for coal seam gas companies to publicly disclose its use.
In a statement, a Santos spokesperson said its use of Cs-137 is “not required to be mentioned in documentation” when seeking planning approval to drill a well.
The spokesperson said Cs-137 is a common isotope used in cancer treatments, as well as in the construction industry to “gauge the thickness and moisture of materials”.
“Santos has used Cs-137 in its NSW operations to measure and report on the underground geology as we drill test wells,” the spokesperson said.
“When used for this purpose a very small quantity of Cs-137, encased by multiple layers of steel, is contained in the logging tool.
“Once the logging of the well is completed the tool and the Caesium are brought back to the surface and securely stored.” Santos maintained that storage and handling of Cs-137 is done in compliance with the Radio Safety Act and Radiation Safety Regulations.
“Cs-137 is securely kept onsite inside a lead and concrete-lined container,” the spokesperson said.
“The use of Cs-137 is registered individually, as are the engineers who are responsible for handling it.”
Just how securely the radioactive material is stored was hotly debated earlier in the year when a number of anti-coal seam gas protesters came across a Cs-137 box in the Pilliga.