Kimberley Traditional Owners travelled to WA Premier Roger Cook's office in his electorate at Kwinana to call for a legislated ban on fracking for the iconic Kimberley region.
The call comes after WA Labor members voted for a statewide ban on the dangerous and polluting gas extraction technique at the party’s State Conference on Saturday.
The decision to heed the party’s position, and make the statewide fracking ban a legislated reality, now sits with Premier Cook.
Traditional Owners urge Premier Cook to legislate a fracking ban in the Kimberley. Photo: Wendy Mitchell.
The Labor conference vote and Traditional Owner visit come at a critical time for the Kimberley. WA’s Environment Protection Authority is expected to make a decision in coming weeks on Texan company Black Mountain’s Valhalla fracking project in the National Heritage-listed Martuwarra Fitzroy River catchment, east of Broome.
If approved, fracking in the Kimberley could start as early as next year. Black Mountain would have permission to drill and frack 20 ‘test’ wells, with expectations that the company would ultimately drill hundreds and possibly thousands more, industrialising the Kimberley beyond recognition.
Traditional Owner from the Kimberley, Madeleine Jadai said, “We welcome the Labor Party decision on the weekend to ban fracking in the Kimberley. Our Country means everything to us and we are totally against anything that would damage and pollute it, like fracking.
“We’ve come from the Kimberley to let the Premier Roger Cook know we now want his government to take the next step and ban fracking.
“We’ve come to his Kwinana office to let him know how much this means to us. Premier Cook: please ban fracking on our land so we can have it safe for future generations.”
Traditional Owners called for a legislated ban on fracking in the Kimberley region. Photo: Martin Pritchard.
Environs Kimberley executive director Martin Pritchard said, “The Labor Party endorsing a ban on fracking in the Kimberley on the weekend was a huge shift. Now, the work begins to make the ban government policy and legislation, and we stand with Traditional Owners to protect Country and make it happen.”
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