The Federal Government’s decision not to apply the Federal water trigger to the North Galilee Water Scheme for the Adani Carmichael Mine is madness during a time of extreme drought, according to Lock the Gate Alliance.
The Water Trigger is there to protect Australia’s precious water resources, and make sure that coal projects that impact them are thoroughly assessed at a federal level.
Lock the Gate Alliance spokesperson Carmel Flint said, “The water trigger contained in the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act was specifically designed to deal with actions involving large coal mining projects with a significant impact on a water resource.
“If the 12.5 billion litres of river water Adani plans to take for its Carmichael Mine doesn’t constitute a significant impact on water resources, then nothing does.
“Also, as a result of this decision to not apply the water trigger, Adani is now free to build a 110-kilometre pipeline, without a rigorous environmental impact assessment.
“This proposal by Adani to take so much water from the Suttor River, in such a drought prone region, should have undergone appropriate scrutiny.”
Advice late last year from the Agriculture and Water Resources Department and the Environment Department indicated they believed the Adani river scheme would have a significant impact on water resources.
“It is a great shame the Federal Government has once again ignored expert advice about the impacts of the Adani mine on water resources,” Ms Flint said.
“Adani’s atrocious environmental track record includes an 800% breach of Adani’s pollution licence, letting coal sludge leech into the coastal waters of the Great Barrier Reef, and being fined for polluting sensitive wetlands.
“Adani should not be allowed to dodge a full environmental assessment and can’t be trusted to properly manage Queensland’s precious water.”