Do Australians really want to ruin
their great and historic Food Bowls?
Their governments certainly do.
See below for relevant websites to help you fight.
Unconventional gas not worth the risk
By Ursula Alquier, Lock the Gate
Victorian co-ordinator, Seaspray
Aug. 6, 2013, noon
LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
THE AustralianPetroleum
Production and Exploration Association has
launched its $5
million 'charm offensive' to try to convince Victorians that
unconventional gas such as coal seam gas tight gas are clean, green and good
for the economy.
APPEA
claims that 100,000 jobs have been created in the gas industry in the past
year, but according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics in May 2013,
employment in oil and gas extraction was 24,700 people.
This
has increased by 9400 since May 2012 and this includes both oil and gas, meaning
the number working in the gas industry is actually much smaller.
What
they also fail to acknowledge is that unconventional gas expansion into rural
Victoria will create job loses in other robust, long-serving and crucial
industries such as agriculture and tourism.
Putting
the negative impact this will have on other local economies aside, we are still
dealing with an industry that has a dismal environmental record with over 6.5
per cent of well casings failing initially and 60 per cent failing over the
first 20 years, leading to migration of methane, these are industry figures.
We
are talking about the contamination of our underground water.
Once
these aquifers have been compromised there is no going back.
Why
would we want to support a 'flash in the pan' industry that has a life span of
25 years at the most and put at risk our water security and the state's ability
to grow clean, safe food for generations to come, all to support an export
market?
That
risk seems too irresponsible and dangerous to take.
For thinking and action:
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