Greenpeace Australia Pacific has welcomed explosive revelations that the Western Australia Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has essentially written off Woodside Energy’s Browse project as too dangerous to proceed.
Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior ship sits near one of Woodside’s proposed drill sites at Scott Reef, Western Australia. Image: Alex Westover
The EPA said that Woodside’s plan to drill for gas near Scott Reef is an ‘unacceptable’ risk to the environment. It cited “threats to endangered whales and turtles and the risk of an oil spill” and concluded that the project posed “threats of serious or irreversible damage.”
The WA EPA detailed the potential dangers associated with the Burrup Hub, highlighting the severe threats posed to vulnerable green turtles and endangered pygmy blue whales from a possible oil spill. The proposed project involves drilling up to 50 wells around WA’s pristine Scott Reef, Australia’s largest oceanic reef system. The area is a critical habitat for endangered species and thousands of corals, including the dusky sea snake, which is being considered for listing as a newly endangered species.
As well as the unacceptable risk to wildlife and Scott Reef, the Burrup Hub, of which Browse is a component, would also emit a staggering 6.1 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions over its proposed 50-year lifespan, a timeline that surpasses the urgent need for the world to transition to net-zero emissions.
Greenpeace Australia Pacific CEO David Ritter expressed grave concerns, stating:
“These revelations today make clear what we’ve long known to be true—that Woodside’s disastrous Burrup Hub project, including its Browse site, is likely to be a disaster for our precious environment, our reefs and threatened species.”
“It is impossible to drill a massive gas field while also protecting our oceans and our climate.”
Minister Plibersek’s decision will define Labor’s legacy on environmental protection. She has a clear choice: safeguard our environment or support a project that prolongs fossil fuel dependence well into the 2070s.
This week, Greenpeace Australia Pacific’s new campaigning vessel, Oceania, set sail towards WA to further spotlight the potentially catastrophic climate and environmental impacts of Woodside’s plans.
The Environment Ministers in Perth and Canberra need to hear how much Australians value our natural environment and want it protected. Without public outcry, the only voices politicians hear is Woodside and the fossil fuel lobby, who seek to downplay and minimise the environmental threat of offshore gas drilling.
Greenpeace will present a half a million-strong petition against Woodside’s Burrup Hub to Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek—who has the power to stop Woodside from going ahead.
Defeating the Burrup Hub would be one of the single most effective things we can do to fight for a safer climate, and a thriving environment. You can help show our Government that Australians want to see Woodside out of our oceans.
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