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Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2015-10-28 Daily Xml
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Oil Exploration

The Hon. M.C. PARNELL (15:20): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking a question of the Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation about proposed drilling for oil in the Great Australian Bight.

Leave granted.

The Hon. M.C. PARNELL: By next week, the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) is expected to make a decision on whether BP is allowed to drill for oil in the Great Australian Bight off the South Australian coastline. Whilst the drilling will take place in commonwealth waters, South Australia has a direct interest in what happens in the Great Australian Bight, particularly the environmental, social and economic impacts if something were to go wrong. All South Australians have an interest in what might happen to the whales and other endangered marine life that call this area home, and we all have an interest in the fishing and tourism industries that rely on a clean marine environment.

In assessing the risk, we have to be mindful of the fact that this company, BP, is also responsible for the worst oil spill in US history in the Gulf of Mexico just five years ago. That incident occurred in similar circumstances to what is proposed off our coastline, although here the risks are even greater with deeper water and a high energy ocean environment.

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: Mr President, point of order. I cannot hear my colleague speak and I am sitting right behind him. Could you please ensure that we can hear what is going on in question time?

The PRESIDENT: I have the same issue and I was just going to mention something to them; but you have done it for me so thank you very much for your assistance. The Hon. Mr Parnell.

The Hon. M.C. PARNELL: Thank you, Mr President. I can't speak any louder: I am shouting, as it is. The initial Gulf of Mexico oil rig explosion killed 11 people and injured 17 others. It discharged five million gallons of oil into the environment over 87 days. The current estimate of the cost of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill is $54 billion. That is more than half the entire annual gross state product of South Australia. It is 20 times the total annual taxation revenue.

Recently, The Wilderness Society released independent modelling which showed the impact of an oil spill in the Great Australian Bight at different times of the year. A winter spill could send oil across most of the South Australian coastline and into Victorian and Tasmanian waters. A summer spill could also seriously impact the Western Australian coastline. My questions of the minister are:

1. Is the minister aware of the recent oil spill modelling released by The Wilderness Society, and is he worried by it?

2. Did the South Australian government make a submission to NOPSEMA and, if so, what did it say?

3. What steps will the minister take to ensure that South Australia's marine and coastal environment is protected from the oil industry operating off our coast?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Climate Change) (15:23): I thank the honourable member for his very important question. The Great Australian Bight is, of course, an area of significant importance for South Australians, particularly South Australians who live in the Great Australian Bight, marine species (including the southern right whales and blue whales) and, of course, other species. It is an iconic part of our state and many South Australians, of course, want to see it protected into the future.

I understand that all petroleum exploration and development activities in commonwealth waters are subject to Australian government environmental standards and reporting requirements. This includes assessment under the provisions of the commonwealth legislation, including the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 and, if required, the EPBC Act 1999.

I am advised that the Australian government has granted exploration permits to BP Exploration Ltd to conduct seismic surveys in the Great Australian Bight. However, the exploration permit areas are not within South Australian waters and will not affect the state's marine parks and, therefore, no state impact assessment processes apply to this exploration activity. Despite this the South Australian government has sought to be kept informed about BP's activities and its development of a new application for drilling exploration.

I am advised that representatives from the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources, the Department of State Development, Primary Industries and Regions, the Environment Protection Authority, SA Police and the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure have had regular updates on BP's planning of the drilling program. I have also met with BP on a number of occasions where I have made very clear to them my views, that in achieving a social licence it is crucial for BP's application for a drilling program to be made more public and transparent.

BP must assure the community on the West Coast, and, more broadly, the whole state, that BP is aware of the risks in the Great Australian Bight and is appropriately mitigating them. The only way to reassure South Australians is to be open and transparent, and I encourage BP to provide all interested stakeholders access to their data, including spill modelling in addition to the risk mitigation strategies, as well as regular briefings throughout the development and drilling application. I understand that the state government will also have an opportunity to comment on BP's proposal before an environment plan is submitted for approval.

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