2016-12-19
Jules Kirby
Despite being opposed to unconventional gas and fracking, many West Australians would be shocked to discover that they have inadvertently been supporting it – as Alinta Energy customers. Alinta, which supplies the vast majority of WAs homes with piped gas, buys from fracking company AWE and sells it to residents right across the state.
Which means you and I could be cooking with fracked gas, and are certainly providing the funds through our gas bills for gas fracking to happen. Fracking is a technique for extracting 'unconventional gas from shale and tight sands rocks deep beneath our feet, and involves forcing water and toxic chemicals into the rocks so they crack open, releasing the gas.
Experience in the US in particular shows unconventional gas and fracking poisons the water supply that we all depend on for daily life. If this accident-prone industry takes off in the Mid West ̶ and Alinta makes that more likely by giving AWE our money ̶ it could contaminate our homegrown West Australian fruits and vegetables, contaminate metro area groundwater supplies, and threaten our valuable farmers homes and livelihoods.
Thanks to Alinta, home gas users are unintentionally at loggerheads with the Mid West communities who are doing everything they can to stop the industry from taking over their farmland. Across the Mid West and throughout the State, communities have signed 'Gasfield Free Declarations telling gas companies to stay away.
This is why it is appalling for Alinta, a company that was founded in WA, to bankroll the unconventional gas and fracking industry to get a foothold in our State. Alinta and AWE signed a two and a half year contract in early 2016 for AWE to supply gas to Alinta from its Mid West fields, and AWE is looking to secure contracts for its next phase of gas extraction from the Mid West Waitsia field in 2017.
As AWEs customer, Alinta is providing the funds AWE needs to expand its unconventional gas and fracking operations in the Mid West - without such custom AWE will struggle to continue these activities. AWEs Mid West unconventional gas operations are among WAs most developed, making the region 'Ground Zero for the fracking industry in the State.
The bizarre part is, Alinta doesnt even need to buy gas from unconventional gas and fracking companies – WA is already producing far more gas from offshore projects than it needs, and there is a global glut of gas supply. Alintas directors need to be clear about the choice they are making – they can buy conventional gas from overproducing existing suppliers, or contaminate our farmland and water supply through the companys contract with AWE.
Farmers have campaigned locally and travelled to Perth to protest against the industry, calling on government and business leaders to stop unconventional gas in the Mid West and across WA. So while farmers are doing everything they can, they need the rest of us to take a stand too.
If we unite as consumers and demonstrate that there isnt a market for it, we can help stop the unconventional gas industry in its tracks.
Lets do that - lets tell Alinta to end its contract with unconventional gas companies like AWE, and call for a Frack Free Future for all West Australians.
Photos: Irwin becomes the fifth town in the Mid West to declare themselves gasfield free. Credit: ABC News: Bonnie Christian. Text photo: Melon farmer Rod Copeland (left) at Frack Off! in Margaret River declaring that the unconventional gas industry must "Frack Off!", with Peter Rowsthorn and Jules Kirby FFF co-ordinator. Credit: Frack Free Future