Hawkesbury Council has approved a report on coal seam gas (CSG) waste water transportation and disposal practices despite it containing inaccurate information about the presence of CSG disposal in the area.
Council received the report at its meeting on July 29 and has requested a further report on the same topic at a future meeting.
The report states: “At this stage, the Council is unaware of any coal seam gas waste water transported into and stored or disposed of in the Hawkesbury LGA”.
But according to a June 2014 background report called ‘Co-produced water - risks to aquatic ecosystems’ commissioned by the Department of the Environment, co-produced water is being collected from the Camden Gas Project by local company Worth Recycling, and taken to its water treatment and recycling centre in South Windsor, where it is mixed with other waste water and treated via membrane filtration and microbial systems.
Further, according to the minutes from a March 2013 meeting of the Community Consultative Committee on the AGL Camden Gas Project, Worth Recycling holds a Hawkesbury Council trade waste licence and supplies weekly data to Council on what it discharges to the sewer.
Kathleen Mackaness, a former ministerial adviser in planning, told the Gazette the inaccuracy suggests a significant internal breakdown in communication between operational areas in Council.
“How can the Council treat its community like this, basically approving a report knowing full well it contains an inaccuracy?” Ms Mackaness said.
“I think Worth Recycling and the Hawkesbury community are the vulnerable victims in this situation.”
Hear about impact: a coal seam gas forum with two environmental activist speakers will be held at Kurrajong Public School on Sunday, August 10, 2-4pm, to inform residents of the impacts of CSG on the environment and the community.
