The $2 billion Santos coal seam gas project in north-western NSW has dodged a legal bullet after the state's Land and Environment Court dismissed a case its main wastewater treatment plant had been constructed without necessary approvals.
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The decision, handed down on Monday by Justice Tim Moore, found permits for the Leewood facility were valid for the treatment of wastewater without a full development consent and environment impact statement (EIS). The site can treat more than 1 million litres of water a day.
The transportation and use of the wastewater, such as for irrigation, was found not to be covered by the approval. Such use, though, can still proceed because Santos doesn't require a permit under the Narrabri Local Environment Plan.
People For The Plains, represented by Environmental Defenders Office NSW, had argued the desalination plant about 24 kilometres south of Narrabri should be considered as a project separate from the exploration of gas in the region.
Rohan Boehm, a spokesman for the People For The Plains, said the verdict was disappointing.
"This is not an exploration system, per se, but it is the beginning of full-scale CSG production for which there is no EIS and there's no opportunity for the community to have a direct input to," Mr Boehm said. "This is the thin edge of the wedge."
A spokesman for Santos welcomed the decision: "This reverse osmosis plant is similar to those used across the world and will be used to treat salty ground water produced by Santos' exploration and appraisal operations to a very high standard so it can be used for irrigation and operational activities."
Santos's venture is the last CSG project proceeding in the state after AGL in February pulled out of its $1 billion Gloucester project and revealed plans to exit its Camden project by 2023 amid local protests.
The Narrabri project is also on go-slow, however, as Santos struggles under huge debts linked to its Queensland CSG fields. Its major partner in Narrabri, EnergyAustralia, in February 2015 wrote off the value of its 20 per cent stake.
A loss in the Land and Environment Court would have triggered an EIS now for the project and given the wider community a say.
An appeal can be lodged within 28 days to the NSW Court of Appeal. Justice Moore reserved costs in the case, citing public interest in the action.
'Riduculous'
Jeremy Buckingham, NSW Greens energy spokesman, said it was "ridiculous that such an enormous waste water treatment facility can be built without a formal EIS, and the parliament should seek to change the law".
"Regardless of this court judgment, it remains a gigantic industrial experiment putting land and water at risk," he said. "The economic case for the Narrabri coal seam gas project has collapsed and the project does not have a social licence."
Energy minister Anthony Roberts said the government "has a robust regulatory framework to protect strategic agricultural lands as well as vital water resources, while at the same time creating jobs and investment for regional communities".
"This decision affirms the Division [of Resources and Energy]'s decision-making processes on this important project and also affirms that approvals can be made under one title when a number of contiguous titles are part of one project," Mr Roberts said.
Labor's environment spokeswoman, Penny Sharpe, said her party remained opposed to the Santos project proceeding.
"Labor's position in relation to CSG in the Pilliga remains that the risk to ground water and the potential impact on the Great Artisan Basin, coupled with other environmental risks in this sensitive ecological area means that CSG exploration and extraction should not continue," Ms Sharpe said.
"Labor's coal seam gas moratorium bill before the Parliament would ensure that this was the case."
Development rules
The EDO argued that waste or resource management facilities needed development consent under the government's State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) 2007.
As such it should have required that Santos prepare an EIS for the project, a move that would open the project to public comment for at least 30 days and give the community a chance to have their say about the impacts of the proposal.
Even if this process led to the project being approved, objectors would still have had the right to appeal on the merits of the project in court, the EDO has said.
Santos, which began work on the project late last year, has argued that it had all necessary approvals.
"The Leewood Phase 2 project was approved following a rigorous and detailed assessment process which was carried out in accordance with the relevant regulatory guidelines," Peter Mitchley, general manager of energy NSW for Santos, told the Northern Daily Leader in April.
"Santos worked closely with a number of government departments through this assessment process and all of these government departments are now satisfied with the sustainability and safety of the project," he said at the time
