Time for WA’s federal Labor MPs to stand up for the Kimberley

Dear local member,

Dear [Federal ALP MP]

 

I am very concerned about the proposal from Texas-based Black Mountain Energy (via subsidiary Bennett Resources Ltd) to frack the Kimberley.

 

The ‘Valhalla’ fracking project in the Kimberley was recently referred to your colleague, Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek, for a decision under the EPBC Act.

 

Her decision is expected any day now.

 

The Minister has three options: Reject the proposal outright as environmentally unacceptable (s74B); declare the project a ‘Controlled Action’ and conduct a full EPBC assessment; wave the project through without any Commonwealth assessment.

 

I ask that you urgently contact the Minister to advise her that West Australian’s don’t want fracking in the Kimberley and that the ‘Valhalla’ fracking project should either be rejected as environmentally unacceptable or, at the very least, declared a Controlled Action and assessed due to its impacts on at least four Matters of National Environmental Significance (MNES): National Heritage; water resources; nationally-listed threatened and migratory species.

 

The Kimberley is a region of outstanding national and international significance for its natural and cultural values. This has been acknowledged through Labor’s listing of the West Kimberley as a National Heritage place in 2011 and by Labor’s commitment to support potential World Heritage listing:

 

1. Labor will: (b) Support the investigation and nomination of areas suitable for future listing…and support Traditional Owners to pursue World Heritage listing for the Kimberley.”

(ALP National Policy Platform (2021). First Nations and heritage.)

 

Visitors flock to the Kimberley each year from across Australia and around the world to enjoy and

appreciate the region’s extraordinary nature, natural landscapes and culture - spending hundreds of millions of dollars and supporting hundreds of local jobs.

 

Because of the Kimberley’s recognised national and global significance, any project that would damage or threaten the region’s unique environmental and economic values requires the highest level of Commonwealth assessment under the EPBC Act.

 

The ‘Valhalla’ project would operate within the catchment of the Martuwarra Fitzroy River - one of Australia’s largest and most intact river systems and an integral part of the EPBC-listed West Kimberley National Heritage place. The project would extract ~2 Billion litres (2GL) of precious groundwater for fracking and risks contaminating aquifers and the river.

 

Black Mountain Energy’s large-scale gas industrialisation plans have been promoted in its investor presentations over the past several years and include a 1000 km pipeline to Karratha (North West Shelf) for LNG export. The company states,

“Project Valhalla is BME’s flagship project and one of the world’s last large scale onshore oil & gas projects.” (BME 2023 company presentation)

 

I cannot overstate how concerned I am by the threat of the ‘Valhalla’ fracking project and Black Mountain Energy’s much bigger plans for industrialising the Kimberley.

 

I trust that you will contact Minister Plibersek URGENTLY to ensure she makes the right decision for the Kimberley. Please let me know when you contact the Minister and what her response is.

 

Yours sincerely

Yours Sincerely,
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