The definition of a floodplain is one of the matters to be thrashed out when the Lake Eyre Basin Stakeholder Advisory Group, set up by the Queensland government last November, holds its first face-to-face meeting in Longreach in May.
According to a Department of Environment and Science spokesperson, "a range of matters relating to Lake Eyre Basin will be discussed at the May meeting, including current regulatory and planning regimes in the Lake Eyre Basin region, proposed activities across various sectors, and intended government processes for community consultation".
Mithaka spokesman George Gorringe said he expected it would be like the fight to keep cotton off the Cooper all over again.
"I'd like to see (resource companies) not even think about any infrastructure on the floodplain, no drilling," he said. "As soon as you do, you change the flow."
The aim of the group is provide advice and assistance to government in the preparation of a consultation Regulatory Impact Statement, to provide options for the longer term sustainable management of the Queensland section of the Lake Eyre Basin.
It's chaired by former Natural Resources Minister Stephen Robertson and includes three basin Traditional Owner Alliance representatives, as well as Desert Channels Queensland, AgForce, QFF, local government, Lock the Gate Alliance, Western Rivers Alliance, and APPEA representatives.
It has so far held two half-day meetings by Zoom, in December and February.
RELATED READING:
Remote Area Planning and Development Board chairman Tony Rayner said the group was very diverse, as was the Lake Eyre Basin.
"The floodplains are the most pristine area, which is where most of the debate is centred," he said.
"There's not much interest in having development activity in the lower catchment but if you include the upper catchment narrow creek systems, that would be very restrictive. The area may as well be one giant national park.
"It's coming down to the pointy end - do we lock the gate or have responsible economic development."
RAPAD recently updated its policy on the Lake Eyre Basin, saying it agreed that resource industry activities such as but not limited to, mining, petroleum, conventional and unconventional gas exploration and development activities are activities that can create value economically and socially.
"However for the same economic, social and also environmental reasons, they should be regulated in the Lake Eyre Basin," it says.
"Protection may be required to extend up into the low order streams at the very top of these headwater areas where extensive mining and high rainfall may occur, producing significant risk of pollution events."
ALSO IN THE NEWS: Holiday nightmare - flash flood leaves tourists homeless at Isisford
Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon was "out of action with COVID" and unable to respond to questions but a departmental spokesperson said the government remained committed to working directly with stakeholders to ensuring adequate protection of Lake Eyre Basin streams and watercourses while also supporting sustainable economic development, and ensuring that all voices, particularly those of traditional owners, are heard in the process.
Lock the Gate Alliance Queensland coordinator Ellie Smith said the fragile river systems of Queensland's Lake Eyre Basin Rivers, and the communities and businesses they supported, needed to be preserved.
She said reports published by the government on assessing development risks to the ecological values of the basin, and assessing the scientific knowledge of shale oil potential impacts were yet more evidence that fracking should be banned on the floodplains of the Lake Eyre Basin.
"Allowing fracking in the Lake Eyre Basin will permanently disrupt some of the last free-flowing desert rivers in the world, harming the clean green beef industry that exists and driving tourists elsewhere," she said.
"No one wants to pay money to visit thousands of fracked shale oil or gas wells pockmarking a once beautiful landscape. Annastacia Palaszczuk claims she loves the outback. Now is her chance to prove it by banning fracking in Queensland's Lake Eyre Basin.
"After the approval of production licences across 250,000ha of the Lake Eyre Basin last year, it's time for the Palaszczuk government to step up and put a moratorium in place on oil and gas fracking while it consults properly and considers these scientific findings."
The stakeholder advisory group will meet in Longreach on May 5, with the next meeting expected in late June 2022.
The government will use the Regulatory Impact Statement process to inform decisions on the sustainable management of all areas within the Lake Eyre Basin.
Want daily news highlights delivered to your inbox? Sign up to the Queensland Country Life newsletter below.
Sally Gall
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
