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Voices form the Gaslands - Megan’s story
For five years Megan Baker fought gas company Arrow Energy for compensation for the land they used, the wells they dug and the damage they did to her property.
It was a hard fought and protracted battle that caused a level of stress that her close-knit family had never experienced before.
The family farm near Dalby is on the edge of two major gas fields and has around 200 gas wells within a few kilometres of the homestead.
There are holding ponds, a compressor station and an osmosis plant all within walking distance of the property.
The Baker’s farm is crisscrossed with pipelines and is the site of gas wells.
At one point Megan and her family were asked to stay indoors for three days while the company sorted out a “gas migration” issue in the pipes and infrastructure buried on the farm.
The family were told that the situation was extremely volatile and for their own safety they could not continue farming until the problem was solved.
It was just another disruption to their lives and their sense of well-being. While the miners were constructing gas wells on the property fences were knocked down, gates left open and sheep left to stray.
A year after the gas miners had left the property it was still littered with abandoned well components and other rubbish. Megan documented and audited
the damage and sent Arrow the bill but it took years for the company to make good on the impact and disruption they had caused.
“It was five years of hard work. It was five years of fighting for every dollar we were paid,” Megan said.
“It was just five years of absolute drama and stress for my family.”
