How local communities and the government united to protect one of Australia’s most precious sources of fresh water.
In a win for many regional communities, the Miles Government recently took decisive action to not only stop mining giant Glencore’s plan to pump carbon into the underground Great Artesian Basin (GAB) but, in this year’s State Budget, allocate $32 million over the next four years to a GAB Security Program.
Last year, at the 2023 National General Assembly of Local Government (NGA) Murweh Shire Council, with the unanimous backing of every Queensland Shire, called on the Australian Government to immediately stop a subsidiary of coal-mining giant Glencore from injecting its waste carbon dioxide (CO2) captured from Millmerran Power Station into the GAB, Australia’s largest groundwater basin and water source for millions of Australians.
At the time, The Mayor Murweh Shire, Shaun (Zoro) Radnedge was forthright about the trial. “It’s madness,” he said at the Australian Council of Local Government (ACLG) in Canberra. “Most of Queensland depends upon this basin, one way or another, and we’re letting a coal mine pump its waste into our water. We must protect the GAB.”
Over the following months, the movement to protect the GAB found support, with calls growing louder from regional Queensland and local government. The Western Alliance of Councils, South West Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils, every Mayor in Queensland, the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ), Queensland Farmers Federation, AgForce, and countless individuals joined in the chorus to bring this to the State Government’s attention.
Ultimately, the State Department of Environmental Services and Innovation (DESI) quashed it at the end of May, deeming that Glencore’s application was unsuitable to proceed due to its potential impacts on groundwater resources.
When Premier Steven Miles made the announcement, Mayor Radnedge handed him a bottle of water taken from the GAB. Like a good sport, the Premier lifted the jug and chugged back the crystal-clear water without hesitation.
After the announcement, Mayor Radnedge thanked the Premier and said, “This kind of action should never be permitted. Most of Queensland depends on this basin somehow and we can’t let this happen in the future.”
For its part, Glencore condemned the decision with a straw-man argument, saying it “called into question the government’s commitment to emission reduction targets.” As reported by the AFR, Glencore followed this howler up with an absurdity: that the State government had “effectively banned carbon capture and storage projects in Queensland.”
It hasn’t. Carbon sequestration is a complex and developing field, with many innovative solutions befitting the complexity of the problems that inevitably arise when transitioning a nation from one energy production source to another. Liquifiying CO2 and pumping it into the GAB is, metaphorically, sweeping it under the carpet. There are a plethora of solutions, and each one is better than what was proposed: put it in our drinking water.
The Great Artesian Basin supports around 80 communities, including Charleville, in outback Queensland and is essential to agriculture, industry and the environment.
The Miles Government is establishing a cross-border commissioner to help border communities in New South Wales and Queensland. This new role will help manage cross-border issues, collaborate with NSW on service delivery matters, and pursue economic opportunities.
“I would like to thank the other councils for joining us in this effort and for the tremendous support we received from the LGAQ, QFF, and AgForce, who have been instrumental in getting this issue in front of the right people,” said Mayor Radnedge.
“We must protect the GAB, it’s our water supply,” concluded Mayor Radnedge.
