The Chairman of Queensland’s Gasfields Commission, John Cotter was in Gingin on September 15 and met with members of the Gingin Water Group and Member for Moore Shane Love MLA to discuss issues surrounding land access and negotiations with petroleum companies.
Established last year by the Queensland government, the Gasfields Commission is an independent statutory body responsible for promoting coexistence
between rural landholders, rural communities and the onshore gas industry.
Member for Moore Shane Love MLA said Mr Cotter had a wealth of experience in the area of landholder and petroleum industry negotiations.
“Mr Cotter was keen to share his experience with landholders and local governments while here in WA, in order that we avoid some of the pain suffered by those groups in Queensland before the introduction of a Land Access Code in 2010,” Mr Love said.
“Queensland also has in place a Land Access Framework which details requirements when landholders and petroleum companies are negotiating a Conduct and Compensation Agreement.
“There is the provision to compensate landholders for reasonable costs relating to accounting, legal or valuation advice and that is something I would like to see in place in Western Australia.” Mr Love said the process of dispute resolution between landholders and the petroleum industry in WA needed
reviewing, with the current option being the Magistrates Court. “This is a daunting process and we need an alternative that involves mediation,” he added.
“The Parliamentary National Party has advocated for landholder compensation for professional advice and an alternative dispute resolution process and would like to see these changes incorporated in the Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Legislation Amendment Bill 2013.”
Whilst in Western Australia, Mr Cotter also met with local government representatives, the petroleum industry and the Department of Mines and Petroleum.
Mr Cotter said in their dealings with landholders and rural communities, petroleum companies needed to be transparent, upfront and subject to independent
assessment.
“We need both the agricultural sector and the petroleum industry and coexistence is possible,” Mr Cotter said.
“I maintain that the petroleum industry needs a social license to operate in a community or on a landholder’s property.
