SALE Memorial Hall was the venue for the state government’s second natural gas community consultation Gippsland open day on Tuesday.
About 140 people, many local, attended the open day, discussing their fears, anxieties and sometimes support for development of the contentious on-shore gas industry.
Lead independent facilitator Mick Maguire, of The Primary Agency, told the Gippsland Times the open days were a genuine consultation process, designed to discover the concerns and views of communities in the areas of the state most likely to be affected if there was development of an on-shore gas industry.
He emphasised his firm had no links to mining, gas and petroleum or heavy engineering concerns and was completely independent, had no conflicts of interest and was not tasked with putting the views of industry.
Mr Maquire said concerns raised in Sale were similar to those broached in Warragul last Thursday, ranging broadly from water and aquifer security, contamination of aquifers, declining property values, and the public’s health, including the anxiety and stress resulting from the drawn out application and approval processes.
“That concern is reflected in the emotion which people have invested in the process,” he said.
“The team communicates with small groups, its job is to listen to and capture the views of the community, not to give out a particular message.
“We try to dispel any misconceptions and would like to hear from as many people as possible, people with differing view points.
“Some have been supportive of the potential for the industry, some avidly against it but all the discussions have been civil and constructive.”
He said the economic benefit argument had come up in discussions, with employment potential being noted, but the problems left behind when the gas was exhausted and the foreign owned companies left were of concern to many.
“The problems are left and the benefit goes elsewhere, is how some describe the issue,” Mr Maquire said.
Problems caused by seismic activity and subsidence had also been raised at both open day meetings, with the risks of earth quakes raised more in Warragul and subsidence locally.
Mr Maquire explained the final report would be delivered to the government on March 31, 2015 following a number of processes which would begin at the end of the month.
An independent market research project will complement the qualitative work of the open days, to statistically validate its results to the wider community.
Invitation only community workshops will begin in July and continue until September, where stakeholder groups would be invited to nominate participants to take part in the 20 planned workshops across Gippsland and the Otways and Western District.
The highly visible presence of anti-gas campaigners outside each open day venue did not cause Mr Maquire concern as he acknowledged their right to put their views.
“ We recognise their right to be there, to protest, and they have been doing it in a civil way,” he said.
Seaspray resident Glenda Bunting was one of many who attended the Sale open day to express her concerns.
“As a community we are very happy that we are being given the chance to voice our opinion.
“ However we have concerns that no matter what we say we will not be valued,” Ms Bunting said.
“I would like to think that people in the community have a voice that can be listened to and not just consulted, but actually worked with.”
“A lot of people are very concerned that no matter what we do it will be pushed aside because there is more importance put towards money and royalties in the industry, and not the actual people who live in our rural community,” she said.
“We’re the ones who live here. We’re the ones who have to suffer from any bad consequences of this industry.”
Ninety Mile Beach campaigner Giuseppe Taranto used the open day to continue his protest at Wellington Shire Council’s coastal subdivision solution, demanding compensation of at least $500,000 for his block of land now valued at $500 as he is not allowed to build on it.
“ The other issue of grave concern is the coal seam gas mining industry which invades our land and our neighbours’ land, poisons the water that we drink and the air we breath and the farm land we grow our food on, without being held accountable,” Mr Taranto said.
An open day was held in Yarram on Thursday, with Mirboo North and Inverloch to follow.
Information on the state government’s community consultation process, including planned events, is available online at www.naturalgasinfo.vic.gov.au
