Community vows to campaign until fracking is banned in the Kimberley

Image: Thousands turn out at Parliament House demanding a ban on fracking in the Kimberley. By: Marnie Richardson

Over a 1,000 people attended the rally at Parliament House to ban fracking in the Kimberley last night. Many Traditional Owners travelled down to call on the Premier Roger Cook to stop the controversial industry in the world-renowned tourism destination. 

The Federal and State governments will decide on whether to allow Texan based oil and gas company Black Mountain to drill and frack 20 wells in the Martuwarra Fitzroy River catchment possibly before the end of the year or early next year.

If the fracking goes ahead, the company has flagged a pipeline to the Pilbara to export gas and this would require hundreds, likely thousands of wells across the Kimberley landscape.

 Patricia Riley

“We don’t want to see fracking in the Martuwarra Fitzroy River catchment. Our community is at the end of the river and any pollution from fracking upstream will affect us, we want a clean, healthy river,’ said Ms Pat Riley, a Nyikina woman from Pandanus Park.

Image: Patricia Riley, Kimberley fracking rally. By Marnie Richardson

 Kimberley man Albert Wiggan said:

“The State and Federal Governments are putting people’s lives on the chopping block. If fracking were to be approved, it would put the lives of people here in the Kimberley at risk.

“We are all West Australians, and we deserve to be treated equally. Our children and future generations deserve to live in an unpolluted environment.

Image: Albert Wiggan, Kimberley fracking rally. By Marnie Richardson

“The Kimberley needs to be protected in the same way that the south west is protected from fracking. It’s one of the last undisturbed places left on the planet. This is why people pay big bucks to visit the Kimberley – they won’t come here to see fracking wells.”

 Mangala Martu Traditional Owner Nuriah Jadai said:

 “You can’t have fracking for oil and gas and have clean water. We choose clean water for our people, our plants and our animals, not fracking.”

Image: Nuriah Jadai and family, Kimberley fracking rally. By Marnie Richardson

Executive Director of conservation group Environs Kimberley, Martin Pritchard, said –

“The Cook and Albanese governments are about to make a momentous decision on fracking that could have polluting impacts on the Kimberley for generations to come.

The thousand people who turned up at Parliament showed that the community won’t back down on this, nothing less than a rejection of the Valhalla project and a ban on fracking will do.

We will take this to the Federal and State elections if we must and the government will remember what happened in Fremantle where they nearly lost the safest seat in Western Australia after a major campaign on stopping fracking and a strong Independent candidate backing it in.

We’ve already started campaigning in six seats across the metro area and we’re getting a very positive response. People don’t want to see the Kimberley industrialised.”

Image: Martin Pritchard, Kimberley fracking rally. By Marnie Richardson

You can take action to help ban fracking in the Kimberley:

Email Federal Environment Minister Murray Watt here 

 Email State Environment Minister here 

Image: John Butler and Albert Wiggan preforming at Parliament House. By Marnie Richardson