- Woodside plans to drill up to 50 gas wells, plus seven wells to dump carbon pollution around spectacular Scott Reef, some as close as 3km from the reef
- EPA's draft letter to Woodside warns of "irreversible" harm to threatened species and says an oil spill would be "catastrophic" for ancient reef system
- Drilling for gas from under a coral reef is incompatible with a healthy ocean and a healthy climate. Government must reject Woodside's gas proposal
Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) staff and government departments raised the alarm on the same unacceptable impacts of Woodside's Browse (Scott Reef) gas proposal as the Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS), a drafted letter to Woodside has revealed today.
The letter revealed fears held by the WA EPA, the Department of Mining, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS), and the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) that Woodside's Browse gas plans near Scott Reef were too risky, stating the precautionary principle should be invoked.
The concerns raised in the WA EPA's draft letter included the risk of an "irreversible" and "catastrophic" oil spill, the potential of 'significant, serious and irreversible harm' to threatened green sea turtles from nesting habitat subsidence, and significant impacts to pygmy blue whales from underwater noise and ship traffic. The WA EPA noted that Scott Reef was the only currently identified foraging area between Timor and southern Australia that is known to be productive during the southern migration of blue whales.
AMCS chief executive Paul Gamblin said: "This letter must surely mark the end of this deeply flawed and troubled project. How can any minister ever support drilling near Scott Reef after what this document reveals of multiple alarm bells ringing loudly across government's own agencies?
"If drilling for gas was proposed anywhere near the Great Barrier Reef there would be a national uproar, but Woodside wants to drill 50 wells around Western Australia's spectacular Scott Reef, some as close as 3km away. This letter confirms why this proposal is completely unacceptable wherever the fossil fuel industry might want to build it.
"Scott Reef rivals WA's World Heritage-listed Ningaloo Reef for marine diversity. It's an ancient and spectacular reef system, formed over the past 15 million years and home to over 2,000 marine species, including endangered corals, pygmy blue whales, green sea turtles and the dusky sea snake.
"It's beyond comprehension that in 2026, Australia would consider risking this concentration of marine life for destructive gas drilling, and possible catastrophic leaks and spills.
"The waters off the Kimberley coast are not immune to oil spill disasters. Australia's biggest oil spill occurred in this region just a decade ago, when the Montara oil field spewed more than 34 million litres of oil into the Timor Sea for 74 days. Woodside's own modelling reveals that a Browse spill could be up to 30 times bigger than the Montara disaster.
"Scott Reef is one of Australia's most ecologically important marine ecosystems, and the risks outlined by the WA EPA make a clear case for why the Browse gas project must not proceed. We must draw a line in the sand. Drilling for gas and dumping carbon near Scott Reef is unacceptable.
"Woodside's Browse gas proposal is incompatible with a healthy ocean and a healthy climate. The Australian Marine Conservation Society calls on the WA and federal environment Ministers to reject this proposal and save Scott Reef."
The EPA's final assessment is expected later this year, however the final decision on the proposal will be made by both WA and federal governments.
