THE Baird government has cancelled three coal seam gas exploration licences in the Sydney water catchment area after buying them back from Apex Energy.
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But Hunter residents are left wondering what the recent sale of a licence covering the Lower Hunter to AJ Lucas could mean for their neighbourhoods.
The latest buybacks are for petroleum exploration licences 442, 444 and 454, all of which had been granted by the previous Labor government between 2002 and 2007. The areas cover almost 600square kilometres, ranging from near Port Kembla to Darkes Forest and west of Oakdale.
The Liberal-Nationals government placed a moratorium on CSG activities in those regions in 2013 and has unveiled a series of permit buybacks during the election campaign. The sale of PEL 458, that extends from Lake Macquarie to Hawks Nest, to AJ Lucas last week is at odds with the flurry of buyback activity elsewhere. As the Newcastle Herald reported some Hunter residents are concerned the region could soon become a hive of coal seam gas activity.
Environment Minister Rob Stokes said on Monday any future coal seam gas activity would be tightly controlled. ‘‘It’s clear there are a number of concerns that need to be addressed,’’ he said. ‘‘We have hit pause to allow the settings on the industry to be reset and in the meantime we are doing everything we can to buyback the licences with the agreement of the licence holders.’’
Greens mining spokesman Jeremy Buckingham called for AGL’s Gloucester gas licence to be cancelled.
