A protester has used a bicycle lock to attach himself to a bulldozer adjacent to a Metgasco CSG facility in Casino this morning.The bulldozer, being used by Metgasco to build a new coal-seam gas wastewater holding pond, is parked outside the facility and some 50 people from the region have gathered adjacent to the site to support the protester.
Lismore resident Davey Bob Ramsay, whose family has lived in the northern rivers region for four generations, locked himself to the machine at dawn this morning to highlight the threats posed by CSG wastewater to land and water in the Richmond Valley.
Lock the Gate Alliance Northern Rivers spokesperson Boudicca Cerese said this morning, ‘We’re here because the NSW government promised to ban evaporation ponds 12 months ago but today Metgasco are building an open wastewater pond on the edge of the Casino floodplain.
‘It seems that Metgasco has been allowed to build these ponds because they have called them “temporary holding ponds” rather than “evaporation ponds”.
‘That is a misnomer in more ways than one – the pond is approved to operate for five years and it functions like an evaporation pond and has exactly the same risks, including pond overflow, liner failure, and seepage into alluvial aquifers.
‘This pond is located in the catchment of Shannon Brook Creek which runs into sensitive wetland areas.
‘Wastewater management of coal-seam gas in the Casino area is a shambles and the NSW government has done nothing to fix it.
‘This action today exposes the promises, by the NSW government, as a sham designed to hoodwink the public into thinking they were putting tougher constraints on coal-seam gas wastewater management.
‘We don’t take this action lightly but we can’t stand by while our governments fail us and we see our floodplains, wetlands and farmlands threatened. Casino is the beef capital of Australia and we don’t want that put at risk by coal-seam gas.
‘We are calling on the O’Farrell government to impose a proper ban on open CSG wastewater ponds and to prevent any further construction of this pond,’ she said.
Good to see farmers out there at last.
The German people have been judged for doing nothing while the Jews were being murdered. The Australian people refuse to watch their countryside being destroyed so they are standing up against the illegal act of a company while the current govt does nothing. If our country side is destroyed we are all responsible if we sit back and do nothing. Of course the Nazis would’ve shot anyone who stood in their way. We don’t face being shot but someone could decide to move that bulldozer despite Davey being locked on to it so he is risking severe injury. What a hero.
It is appalling that we, the community, are having to put our lives at risk in this way to protect our precious water and ensure a future for our children and grandchildren. Governments are supposed to represent the people, protect their rights and health and act for the common good. The NSW government has become a threat to people and communities across NSW, being prepared to sacrifice our health, safety and happiness to protect the profits of a few monsters who control the big corporations. We need a government who will look after us, our environment and precious resources – a governmnet who will put the people first and fight for us, not against us. What hope can we have when our governments turn on us?
How refreshing to be able to read real news in a newspaper
I’ll be forwarding copies of this article to as many people, including local, state and federal politicians, as possible to highlight the disdainful way that Metgasco is treating our environment and the absolute shame that this man was arrested because he took part in action to try to remedy the situation. Where is the State Government’s protection of our community?
100% support for this action.