SCA science works for water protection in coal seam gas activities

Coal seam gas exploration remains a significant issue in the community and an area of strong focus for the Sydney Catchment Authority (SCA).

Coal seam gas activities have the potential to affect the quantity and quality of surface and groundwater in the drinking water catchments, water supply infrastructure and the ecological health of protected catchment land.

The SCA’s science team is working to ensure the organisation has the best contemporary knowledge on the potential impacts of coal seam gas activities.

SCA Principal Scientist Dr Jerzy Jankowski said his team is developing a monitoring program for surface and groundwater to assess possible impacts from coal seam gas drilling.

“The SCA already has an extensive understanding of surface and groundwater impacts from longwall mining and this monitoring program for coal seam gas operations will build on that knowledge.

“We are developing the program using the science collected from current coal seam gas operations in Queensland and New South Wales, as well as contemporary knowledge from around the world.

“Understanding the potential environmental impacts is very important in allowing the SCA to provide informed advice to the departments that approve coal seam gas exploration or production.”

It also helps that the SCA build in stringent conditions to its own access consents where mining companies require access to SCA land.

Dr Jankowski said there is currently only one coal seam gas project approved by the Minister for Planning on lands managed by the SCA for water quantity and quality.

Last month the Planning Assessment Commission granted approval for a 16th borehole for this project at Darkes Forest to the south of Sydney.

The additional borehole is also on SCA land and the SCA made a submission to the Planning Assessment Commission recommending a number of rigorous conditions be put in place if the borehole was approved.

“Our submission focused on ensuring groundwater and surface water quality would not be affected and the Planning Assessment Commission have required the mining company to address the recommendations made in our submission,” Dr Jankowski continued.

These conditions now apply retrospectively to all the boreholes approved for the project and not just this additional 16th borehole.

“This is a very strong position for the SCA and our ongoing focus on the scientific knowledge behind potential coal seam gas activities means we can continue to provide this high-level advice during the planning and approval process.”

There is no coal seam gas production approved on SCA land and drilling for the exploration activities has not started.

Any proposal to move from exploration to production requires a new application, approval and environmental assessment process.

The SCA has six mining principles that help inform its science and research programs and underpin its advice to the Department of Planning and Infrastructure and the Department of Trade and Investment, Regional Infrastructure and Services.

More information about the SCA’s mining principles is available at www.sca.nsw.gov.au.

The article originally appeared in scan: The Sydney Catchment Authority’s quarterly newsletter (Issue 03 - Summer 2011).