CSIRO study finds hydraulic fracturing fears unfounded

An independent and authoritative review by Australia’s leading scientific agency, the CSIRO, provides further evidence there are no negative impacts of hydraulic fracturing that can’t be managed by robust regulation and high industry operating standards.

The study conducted by the CSIRO’s Gas Industry Social and Environmental Research Alliance, found the use of hydraulic fracturing to extract coal-seam gas in Queensland has little to no impact on groundwater, waterways, soils or air quality.

APPEA Chief Executive Andrew McConville said the CSIRO field study backs up over a dozen independent scientific inquiry that have confirmed that properly regulated, hydraulic fracturing is a safe practice.

“Hydraulic fracturing has been used safely in Australia for more than 60 years, and is part and parcel of the safe, sustainable development of our abundant natural gas resources,” Mr McConville said.

“While there some in the community who continue to make false and exaggerated claims about the environmental impacts of gas exploration and production, all the credible evidence confirms properly-conducted gas activities have negligible impacts.”

The three-year study measured the impact of hydraulic fracturing, often referred to as fracking, at six coal-seam gas wells operated by Origin Energy in the state’s Surat Basin region near Roma.

The GISERA media release and report can be found at: https://gisera.csiro.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/CSIRO-GISERA-media-release-AWS-Impacts-of-Hydraulic-Fracturing-final.pdf

GISERA is a collaboration between CSIRO, Commonwealth and state governments and industry established to undertake independent, publicly reported research on the social and environmental impacts of the gas industry.

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