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Arsenic, lead found in toxic coal seam gas spill

milton_judd_photo1_lowresA toxic and complex cocktail of heavy metals (arsenic, lead and chromium), salts and petrochemicals has leaked from a coal seam gas water (CSG) storage into the Pilliga forest, near Narrabri in NSW.

“The NSW Government should shut down the Santos operation in the Pilliga, the last great

temperate woodland left in NSW, and implement an immediate moratorium on coal seam gas mining,” Naomi Hogan of The Wilderness Society said today.

Santos admitted in January that a spill occurred on June 22, but samples collected recently by The Wilderness Society and the Northern Inland Council for the Environment raise concerns that the spill may be ongoing and show that dangerous substances are still present at high levels in the forest.

The water tests (conducted by leading NSW laboratory and NATA accredited ALS Laboratory) detected heavy metals up to 37 times higher than natural levels and five times drinking water standards. The tests showed 0.05 milligrams per litre of lead (25 times natural levels and 5 times the acceptable level for drinking water); 0.021mg/l of arsenic (21 times natural levels and 2.1 times drinking water standards); and 0.187mg/l of chromium (37 times natural levels and 3.74 times drinking water standards).

“Our tests of the Pilliga spill have revealed for the first time just how toxic this coal seam gas water is. It is a cocktail of heavy metals, such as lead and arsenic, plus salts and petrochemicals.

“The test results also raise concerns that it is not a one-off spill and that the coal seam gas water may still be leaking into the environment, given the high concentrations of semi-volatile petrochemicals recorded” she said.

“This water represents a grave threat to human health, to wildlife, and to the precious waterways of the Murray-Darling Basin and the groundwater of the Great Artesian Basin,” Carmel Flint of the Northern Inland Council for the Environment said.
“The results show that coal seam gas mining is a risky and polluting industry that will destroy bushland and farmlands. They confirm that coal seam gas mining is not safe and that regulation by the NSW Government has failed dramatically.

“It should not be left to the community to police and monitor coal seam gas operations, and it should not be left to environment groups to fund basic water testing from donations.

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