Tuesday, 15 August 2023

Oil and gas exploration

Sarah MANSFIELD (Western Victoria) (16:21): (383) The action I am seeking from the Minister for Energy and Resources is to advocate to the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority for an end to the seismic blasting that is supporting gas and oil exploration offshore from Victoria. Our oceans in Victoria are under extreme pressure from a range of threats. One threat in particular has led the coastal communities of western Victoria to draw a line in the sand: seismic blasting. Seismic blasting is undertaken by fossil fuel companies surveying for untapped gas and oil reserves under our oceans. To map the ocean floor, airguns trawled behind large vessels emit powerful sound waves at the underwater equivalent of around 180 decibels every 10 seconds, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, often for months on end. To put that in perspective with sounds that we hear on land, a jackhammer is 130 decibels – this is the point that causes humans pain – 140 decibels is the equivalent of a jet engine at around 30 metres and 180 decibels is almost 100,000 times louder than this and causes immediate deterioration of human hearing tissue.

Just as noise harms the human eardrum, research is increasingly showing that this level of marine noise has negative implications for a range of marine species. Zooplankton, the small but essential building block of our marine ecosystems, has been found to die at extreme rates in blasted areas. Southern right whales, which calve and feed throughout the Otway Basin, are under threat by the disruption that marine noise has to their migratory patterns.

New licences for companies to undertake seismic blasting in the Otway Basin are set to be granted in October. Western Victoria’s coastal communities depend on healthy oceans for their lives and work, and they hold grave concerns for the impact that new seismic blasting will have on this precious marine life. Last week Warrnambool city councillors voted unanimously to oppose seismic testing in the Otway Basin, joining Moyne shire, Colac Otway shire and Surf Coast shire in their opposition. In Cr Paspaliaris’s contribution she acknowledged that the council could not continue to celebrate their strong position on climate change while remaining silent on the significant risk that seismic blasting poses to their coastline.

The Andrews state government has promoted itself as leaders in the movement to tackle climate change, and yet it is silent about the blasting that is happening in federal waters and impacts on Victorian communities and coastlines. Steps to transition off gas are one thing, but what we need from this government is for them to make brave decisions and start taking the strongest possible action to protect our precious marine environment and tackle climate change. This means no more seismic blasting and an end to offshore gas.