Protesters rally in NSW against CSG wastewater ponds

21/06/2012 - About fifty protesters have rallied at a coal seam gas site in northern NSW, calling on the state government to stand by its promise to ban construction of wastewater ponds.

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Metgasco is exploring the region around Casino for CSG, and has drilled several exploration wells looking for a pocket of underground gas to mine.

Wastewater is a by-product of the process involved in sinking wells and ponds are constructed to store the wastewater before it is transported off site.

Lock the Gate spokeswoman Boudicca Cerese told reporters protesters gathered near Casino to highlight the danger of the ponds.

"What we're concerned about is the risk to surrounding farmland and wetland," she said.

"There's problems with seepage into aquifers."

The water is loaded with heavy metals, ammonia and other volatile petro-chemicals and is dangerous to plants and animals, Cerese said.

Comment was being sought from the government.

Further down the coast residents of Fullerton Cove, about 10 kilometres north of Newcastle, will rally on Wednesday night against the construction of coal seam gas (CSG) wells.

Dart Energy wants to drill in to the Tomago sandbeds near Fullerton Cove and residents fear the CSG wells will contaminate or destroy their water supply.

"We are concerned that the two aquifers we use for our water supply will either be contaminated with gas or contaminated with salt," Stop CSG Fullerton Cove president Lindsay Clout told reporters on Wednesday.

"Or we'll lose it by the depressurisation of the seam level...which will cause our aquifers to drain down."

"The risks are very, very high."

Meanwhile in Sydney, Marrickville council on Wednesday rejected a move to poll residents about their thoughts on developing CSG mines in the council area.

Although the council has twice voted down attempts by Dart to explore CSG in the Marrickville council area, Stop CSG Sydney is accusing the council of only paying lip service to the issue on the eve of elections.

"(We are) unconvinced that Dart Energy does not intend to drill in 2012 given both the NSW government and Dart Energy have failed to respond to requests to withdraw the licence," Stop CSG Sydney said in a statement.

Source: AAP

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