Thanks to Tim Forcey’s testimony, a very fundamental yet significant environmental impact has been clearly highlighted in evidence for the Tribunal.  That is the aspect of methane gas emissions from the industry and their massive contribution to green house gas production in Australia, and the abject failure for this to be adequately acknowledged or managed by the industry or the Government.  This puts at risk any hope we have of meeting our commitments to global warming. 

Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas (more powerful than CO2).

This industry produces methane emissions as a BY-PRODUCT and waste stream as well as the commercial end product and fails to count the majority of the emission points along the production line.

These fugitive methane gas emissions that happen all along the production line and are not adequately reported and therefore their impact is not addressed.

The government has failed to ensure that there was baseline testing of methane emissions prior to the industry being rolled out.  And the industry is expanding exponentially with no changes to the measurement/ management of methane emissions.

The Australian government has a requirement for greenhouse gas reporting, yet this massive producer of greenhouse gasses has yet to comprehensively, rigorously, independently veritably audit gas emissions.

The Australian People and even the UN have begged the Australian government to update and improve their methodologies for monitoring and measuring the actual emissions. 

Such ignorant under-reporting of this powerful greenhouse gas poses an enormous impact on the contribution that Australia is making to climate change, infact these emissions could be larger than our Paris reduction commitments!

Also important to note is that where ever there is methane being emitted it is not alone, also present is multiple toxins.

List of substances found in analysis of methane gas from high point vents, risers and water bores.