QUEENSLAND state farm organisation, AgForce, has put forward the prospect of legal action against a controversial plan to inject waste carbon dioxide into Great Artesian Basin – by launching a fundraising campaign.

Swiss mining giant Glencore is still working through its Environmental Impact Statement with the Qld Department of Environment and Science, with a final decision on whether it will be allowed to proceed due in May.

The plan is to capture waste CO2 from the Millmerran Power Station and compress the gas into liquid form, before transporting it 260km further west to Moonie. Glencore subsidiary Carbon Transport and Storage Company is planning to do it as a three-year trial.

But AgForce chief executive officer Michael Guerin has expressed frustration at the fact the proposal has progressed as far as it has, without triggering any Federal Government protections against the GAB.

AgForce CEO Mike Guerin

“It’s hard to imagine the support would be the same if Glencore proposed pumping industrial waste into Sydney Harbour or the Great Barrier Reef,” he said in an opinion piece on the lobby group’s website.

“Yet, here we are very close to Glencore having all the approvals it needs to do exactly that to the Great Artesian Basin. That the idea was even conceived beggars’ belief, but that it is most of the way through the approvals process is staggering and simply unacceptable.

“Communities are angry, frustrated and deeply concerned.  That’s why we have taken such strong action to underwrite and lead legal proceedings.”

Fundraising campaign launched

The organisation has today launched a fundraising campaign to offset some of the legal costs.

“We seek to resolve this out of court but are prepared to go to the Federal Court if necessary.  We will leave no stone unturned in this campaign,” it said in inviting donations.

“We have strong and detailed legal advice showing we have a valid argument and good prospects of success. The Federal Minister has the authority to revoke the 2022 decision and we have provided the detailed reasoning that we believe allows her to make that revocation.  We are concurrently preparing filings in case we need to take it to court.”

Mr Guerin called on the Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek to intervene.

“Minister Plibersek, this is a cry for help before it is too late.  Please heed our call and protect one of our most precious water resources,” he said.

Beef Central contacted the minister for a response early this afternoon, who chose not to comment.

A spokesperson for the department of Environment said the project does not fall under national environmental law.

Glencore defends project

Glencore is continuing to standby to the project and has given similar justification to what was highlighted in this comprehensive article last year. A spokesperson said:

“Glencore understands and respects the importance of the Great Artesian Basin to the Australian agricultural community. We also understand there can be resistance to new projects or technologies in agricultural areas.

“We encourage people to read our Environmental Impact Statement, which is publicly available and outlines the scientific data in detail.

“Just as the agricultural community has embraced technology to increase yields and crop qualities, the world will be reliant on technologies – like CCS –  to meet its global climate goals.”