Australian State of Victoria Starts Discussions for Onshore Gas Development

Australian state of Victoria on Wednesday launched a community and stakeholder engagement program to seek public input on the possible development of onshore natural gas.

Energy and Resources Minister Russell Northe said the government is responding to the community’s request for factual information and an opportunity to participate in discussions about the possible future development of onshore natural gas – which includes tight, shale and coal seam gas.

“This engagement process is designed to give Victorians the chance to have their say about onshore natural gas and to let us know about their key concerns on this important issue,” Northe said in a statement.

With the assistance of an independent facilitator a range of consultation activities will now be undertaken across the state, including information open days, meetings with community groups, local government and farmers, and workshops to discuss specific issues in greater depth.

The Victorian government is overseeing a major benchmarking study of the impacts of natural gas extraction on underground water across the state, funded by the Commonwealth Government.

Victoria is also actively participating in the Commonwealth funded Coal Seam Gas Bioregional Assessment of the Gippsland Basin, working with other Commonwealth Government agencies.

According the the government, these combined studies will provide information to inform decisions about this important issue.

The Victorian government announced in November last year that the moratorium on new exploration licences for onshore natural gas and on hydraulic fracturing would be extended until at least July 2015 while community consultation and independent water studies were carried out.