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Environmental Defenders Office NT Submission to the Independent Scientific Inquiry Into Hydraulic Fracturing

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Environmental Defenders Office NT Submission to the Independent Scientific Inquiry Into Hydraulic Fracturing Environmental Defenders Office NT Submission #213 Environmental Defenders Office NT Submission to the Independent Scientific Inquiry into Hydraulic Fracturing David Morris Principal Lawyer Environmental Defenders Office NT 30 April 2017 1 Table of Contents ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENDERS OFFICE NT ......................................... 3 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................... 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY & RECOMMENDATIONS .......................................................... 5 DEFINITIONS SECTION ....................................................................................................... 7 THE CURRENT NT REGULATORY REGIME .................................................................... 8 The Act .......................................................................................................................................................... 8 The Regulations .............................................................................................................................................. 9 The Assessment Regime ................................................................................................................................... 9 THE TWO UNDERLYING THEMES .................................................................................. 10 THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE .............................................................................................................. 10 Knowledge gaps and uncertainty with HVHF ............................................................................................... 10 The precautionary principle in legislation ........................................................................................................ 12 Operationalizing the precautionary principle within the NT’s regulatory regime. .............................................. 14 OBJECTIVE BASED VS PRESCRIPTIVE REGULATION – OR A HYBRID APPROACH? ............................... 16 THE BACKGROUND & ISSUE PAPER REGULATORY FRAMEWORK - RISK THEMES 18 FAILURE TO PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT .............................................................................................. 18 Baseline data ................................................................................................................................................. 18 No-go zones .................................................................................................................................................. 19 Protection of ground and surface water ............................................................................................................ 21 Bioregional planning & Cumulative Impact Assessments .............................................................................. 26 Transport, treatment and disposal of waste ..................................................................................................... 26 Climate change .............................................................................................................................................. 27 LAND ACCESS ................................................................................................................................................. 27 PUBLIC HEALTH ............................................................................................................................................. 28 Full disclosure ............................................................................................................................................... 28 ABORIGINAL PEOPLE & THEIR CULTURE .................................................................................................. 29 Free, prior & informed consent & Veto Rights ............................................................................................. 30 Sacred sites .................................................................................................................................................... 32 ECONOMIC IMPACTS ..................................................................................................................................... 34 Security for rehabilitation ............................................................................................................................... 34 COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT ............................................................................................................ 36 Chain of responsibility provisions ................................................................................................................... 36 Environmental history & proper person tests ................................................................................................. 37 REGULATORY CAPTURE ................................................................................................................................ 38 CUMULATIVE RISK ......................................................................................................................................... 39 REPORT ATTACHMENTS .................................................................................................... 44 Attachment A: ............................................................................................................................................. 44 EDONT Report to the Commissioner – Best Practice Regulatory Frameworks for Hydraulic Fracturing Operations. (EDO Hawke Report) .............................................................................................................. 44 Attachment B: .............................................................................................................................................. 44 EDONT Comment of the Draft Petroleum (Environment) Regulations ........................................................ 44 Attachment C: .............................................................................................................................................. 44 Expert Report, Anthropological – Gareth Lewis ........................................................................................... 44 Attachment D: .............................................................................................................................................. 44 Expert Report, Linear Infrastructure Impacts – Renata Bali ........................................................................ 44 Attachment E: .............................................................................................................................................. 44 Expert Report, Ecosystem function, Ecology, Groundwater dependent ecosystems, water resource development and use, climate change - Matthew Collof .............................................................................................................. 44 Attachment F: .............................................................................................................................................. 44 Expert Report, Ecotoxicology - Dr Scott Wilson ........................................................................................... 44 2 About the Environmental Defenders Office NT The Environmental Defenders Office Northern Territory (EDONT) is a non-profit community legal centre specialising in public interest environmental law. The EDONT has recognised expertise in environmental law and is the only organisation in the NT, which provides free legal assistance to members of the community in relation to public interest environmental matters. The EDONT has specific expertise in relation to the regulation of the petroleum industry in the Northern Territory. We have (and do) act for traditional owners with respect to applications made under the Petroleum Act and have provided extensive community legal education in relation to hydraulic fracturing, including making presentations to the Full Council of the Central and Northern Land Councils. The EDONT’s reputation is built on: Successful environmental outcomes using the law. With over 20 years’ experience in environmental law, EDONT has a proven track record in achieving positive environmental outcomes through law. Broad environmental expertise. EDONT is an acknowledged expert when it comes to the law and how it applies to the Territory environment. We help the community to solve environmental issues by providing legal advice, community legal education and advocating for better laws. Independent and accessible services. As a non-government and non-profit community legal centre, our services are provided without fear or favour. Anyone can contact the EDONT to get free legal advice about an environmental problem. Many of our services are targeted at remote parts of the Northern Territory. Submitted to: The Independent Scientific Inquiry into Hydraulic Fracturing [email protected] For further information on this submission, please contact: David Morris, Principal Lawyer, EDONT 3 Introduction At a speech in Adelaide in 2016, environmentalist, David Suzuki, gave of examples where the passage of time and increased scientific understanding has found things that were thought to be safe were in fact not safe. Among other matters, he referred to the discovery of DDT pesticides: “We all thought DDT pesticides were fantastic until Rachel Carson’s book (Silent Spring) came out. And for me as a scientist what stunned me was the realisation that science can be
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