The northwest coastline of Australia is a fairly pristine, isolated region that is home to many rare, vulnerable, and endangered animals. Known as the Kimberley, this region is the last wild area left in Australia and one of the few remaining in the world. A natural treasure, the Kimberley is also sacred ground for the aboriginal tribes of Australia and the site of some of the oldest known human rock paintings. Even so, this culturally and environmentally rich region is now under threat from energy and mining industries.
Several energy companies, including an American company called Woodside Energy, now have plans to drill for oil and natural gas in the Browse Basin, a geographic underwater area just off the pristine Kimberley coastline. The other energy companies are BP, Shell, Chevron, and BHP Billiton. Natural gas will be extracted through a process called fracking, which can have devastating consequences for marine life such as endangered Humpback Whales that use the area for breeding and a nursery. Fracking has a high probability of releasing toxins into the water.
Kimberley Region and Browse Basin. From: http://www.dredgingtoday.com
A few days ago on April 5, the Australian federal government delayed Woodside’s dredging project until late May pending the receipt of more information. In its assessment, Woodside did not address concerns about the possibility of releasing arsenic, nickel, and zinc into the water. The Wilderness Society has asked the Australian federal government to conduct a fully independent scientific review of all data submitted by Woodside. For the most up-to-date information concerning the Kimberley, visit this link.
The energy companies involved have proposed sending the oil and natural gas to processing plants by way of pipelines that would run through the Kimberley. There have been protests at every stage of development by aboriginal tribes and those living in towns neighboring the Kimberley. As of right now, the plan drawing the most fire is the proposed construction of a massive natural gas hub or processing plant at James Price Point in the Kimberley region. The plant would be located right in the middle of the area where a cultural aboriginal ceremony has taken place for hundreds of years.
Tribe members and the residents of the town of Broome just south of James Price Point have banned together to organize protests and blockades to try to prevent bulldozers and other equipment from reaching the Point. Several participating in the blockade have been arrested. The protesters have also launched a letter-writing campaign in an attempt to convince the Australian government and Woodside that the hub should be built on one of the alternative sites that were proposed instead of on the Kimberley Coast.
Now that the Kimberley has been opened to the fossil fuel industry, the mining industry wants to join the fray. Several companies are interested in strip mining the coastal areas of the Kimberley, which would destroy all of the vegetation in these areas. Some projects that are in advanced planning stages or moving toward development include two bauxite mines in the North Kimberley, two major port facilities that require significant dredging, iron ore mining, and a 200,000 ton-per-year zinc mine at Admiral Bay south of Broome.
The mining projects and the construction of the natural gas hub at James Price Point would be particularly devastating to the endangered and vulnerable species living in the Kimberley. Some of these species include the Gouldian Finch, Purple Crowned Fairy Wren, Loggerhead Turtles, and Australian Flatback Turtles. The turtle populations would suffer because the beaches of the Kimberley are prime nesting places. Strip mining would destroy the vegetation that the birds rely on for habitat. The consequences for the Gouldian Finch in particular would be extremely dire because the population has been decimated by the exotic bird trade as well as the industrialization in the rest of Australia. There are now only about 2,500 Gouldian Finch left in the wild.
Gouldian Finch
By: Tom Hince. From: http://www.netcore.ca/~peleetom/
What can you do to help?
- Visit the Save the Kimberley website to learn more about this issue and donate to the cause.
- Click here to donate to the Wilderness Society on behalf of the Kimberley.
- Sign this online petition asking the energy companies to use one of their alternative sites instead of industrializing the Kimberley Coast.
- Sign this online petition telling West Australian Premier Barnett that you don’t want industrial development in the Kimberley.
- While you’re at it, sign this online petition telling WA Premier Barnett that you don’t want a natural gas hub at James Price Point.
- Support the development of green energy sources, and vote for progressive politicians who are interested in clean energy.
Thanks for reading! Do you think that green energy is a better alternative to fossil fuels? Please let me know in the comments.
One Species at a Time 