The NSW Baird Government reveals its
political sensitivity concerning its Gas Plan via this exchange
in the letters section of The Daily Examiner, a regional
newspaper in the Clarence Valley.
The
first brief letter by a Lower Clarence resident elicited a misleading official
comeback within days.
Letter
to the editor published on 15 January 2015:
Gas Plan an
insult
IT WILL take more than a picture of a
young girl testing the waters of what seems to be a pristine dam, to convince
the NSW taxpayers that their money is well spent on these full page NSW Gas
Plan advertisements.
Such propaganda will not work as
people are far too intelligent to be fooled into thinking we don't need to
worry about CSG mining now that the NSW Government has created a website.
It is an insult to the intelligence of
the community who have overwhelmingly voiced their opposition to unconventional
gas mining in the Northern Rivers.
The "NSW Gas Plan" does
nothing to stop landholders and communities being forced into giving access to
their land against their will and has no improved safeguards for human health
in the plan.
Every council on the North Coast has
now asked for petroleum exploration licences to be revoked. It is obvious the
Government is NOT listening to the voters of NSW and spending huge amounts of
taxpayers' money to advertise something they do not support is disappointing to
say the least.
Annie Dorrian
Iluka
Letter
to the editor published on 19 January 2015:
Gas Plan
defence
I AM writing in response to a letter
published in your newspaper (15/1) headed: "Gas Plan an insult".
The author claims that an advertorial
outlining the NSW Government's comprehensive Gas Plan is an insult to the
intelligence of the community.
It is unfortunate that the reader has
interpreted the advertorials in this manner. The aim is to raise awareness
amongst the community that this State, for the first time, has a plan for the
safe and sustainable development of our local gas reserves.
The advertorials will hopefully
stimulate people to try to learn more about the plan, the debate and the
evidence we have in relation to the risks, the science, the industry and the
actions being taken across Government, as we try to balance the economic,
environmental and social needs of our State.
This includes a range of actions,
which contrary to what is claimed in the letter, cover water, environment,
community and landholders' interests.
For example, the use of evaporation
ponds and BTEX has been banned. New guidelines for community consultation
practices have been set. New codes/standards for well engineering and fracture
stimulation practices have been set and peer reviewed by the NSW Chief
Scientist and Engineer, Professor Mary O'Kane.
Groundwater studies have been
completed on the Gunnedah, Gloucester and Clarence- Moreton basins, and the
list goes on.
In total, more than 30 measures were
introduced before the Gas Plan, and the Gas Plan itself adds a significant
number of additional measures, including the NSW Government's acceptance of all
of Professor O'Kane's recommendations.
The plan also outlines new measures
aimed at ensuring community and landholders can share more directly in the
benefits of gas exploration and development in their areas.
Again, the plan builds on advances already
made in this area, such as the review of the arbitration system for land access
agreements and the public commitments made by Santos and AGL not to seek access
to a landholders' property if the landholder does not want them on their land.
So much has been done in recent years
to better balance the economic, social and environmental issues of this
industry. The advertorials simply aim to raise awareness of this fact and
encourage people to learn more.
Lastly, it is also important to note
that it is not correct to imply all people in NSW oppose this industry.
As with all industrial activities,
there are those who support it, those who oppose it ... and those who are not
interested in the debate or have not yet made up their minds.
Hopefully, for those who are curious
about learning more, the Gas Plan will be a helpful place to start.
For more information, please visit
gasplan.nsw.gov.au
Kylie
Hargreaves
Deputy Secretary, Resources &
Energy, NSW Trade & Investment
Bentley
UPDATE
Bite back at Gas Plan propaganda in The Daily Examiner letters section on 23 January 2015:
Gas
plan hard sell
THE NSW Government is
spending thousands upon thousands of taxpayer dollars in advertisements to try
to sell their so-called NSW Gas Plan to the residents of the Northern Rivers.
This is
an obvious attempt to shore up votes for the coming State election in those
seats where National Party candidates are most likely to suffer voter backlash
from many disillusioned members of the community.
It is
not a genuine attempt to inform, educate and consult.
Many
citizens would like the right of reply to these advertisements but we do not
have the vast amount of dollars required to buy the necessary newspaper space
and radio time to counteract the misleading statements in this patronising propaganda.
The
main avenue for us, the voters, to have our say regarding our concerns, is by
writing letters to the editors of our local newspapers. We are grateful for
this opportunity; however, there is limited space in the newspapers to publish
our letters - certainly not a full page plus one bonus advertorial half-page.
So it
is unjust and inappropriate that Kylie Hargreaves, deputy secretary, resources
and energy, NSW Trade and Investment, should write a 457-word letter (19/1) to
The Daily Examiner to refute the written opinion of a member of the public
(15/1).
The
Government is already bombarding us with advertisements - we open a newspaper
or other local publication, we turn on the radio or, worst of all, in the
privacy of our own home we log into our Facebook page to connect to our
friends, and up pops a NSW Government Gas Plan ad.
Please,
Ms Hargreaves, leave us at least one forum where we can have our say without
interference from the Government.
And
while I have this opportunity, may I point out the NSW Gas Plan is not about
"Keeping our water pure", "Securing farming future" or
"Protecting future generations."
It is
all about ensuring that the gas industry proceeds throughout NSW.
Rosemary Joseph,Bentley
