Cotton Australia Chair Nigel Burnett, CEO Adam Kay and General Manager Michael Murray attended high level meetings on May 29 in Brisbane primarily to discuss grower concerns in regards to the intersection of the Coal Seam Gas industry and our industry on the Darling Downs.

Cotton Australia recognises that our growers who are affected one way or another, hold a broad range of views - from being happy to engage with the CSG industry by hosting gas infrastructure and are confident that any risks are being well managed, through to growers who are completely opposed to the gas industry operating on the prime cropping soils on Darling Downs.

What has become scientifically certain over the past two years is that CSG extraction has and will continue to cause subsidence across the landscape where CSG is extracted.

What is not scientifically clear at this point, is how significant subsidence will be, and whether it will reduce the productive capacity of the land.

Cotton Australia’s advocacy at this point has been focused on the establishment of a clear regulatory framework that will ensure should the productive capacity be reduced a clearly identified resource company will be responsible for restoring that capacity.

Meetings held included the Minister for Resources Scott Stewart, Qld Gasfield Commissions CEO Warwick Squire, Office of Groundwater Impact Assessment Executive Director Sanjeev Pandey, and the newly appointed Director-General of the Department of Agriculture Chris Sarra.

Cotton Australia generally welcomes the recent Qld Government’s response to the Gasfields Commission’s recommendation in its Regulatory Review of CSG Induced Subsidence.

It should be noted both the recommendations and responses lack the necessary detail, and in particular there is no clear government guidance on how it will deal with impacts that could be assessed as “critical”.

Cotton Australia will continue to engage with a range of stakeholders and pursue a robust regulatory framework.