CONOCOPHILLIPS Australia is on the island today and is conducting further engagement sessions and community consultation for the ConocoPhillips Australia Otway Exploration Drilling Program.
The purpose of the meetings is to provide an update, inform and address previous concerns and answer questions about their proposed drilling program and the proposed drilling activity.
Today’s sessions will be held at the King Island Town Hall 11-1pm and tonight 6-8pm.
ConocoPhillips have been working just offshore from King Island for a number of years. In 2021 the company acquired the Sequoia Seismic survey. After processing that data, they propose to undertake exploration drilling for gas to the west and north of King Island.
This is the company’s fourth consultation visit to the island and today’s meetings offer both one-on-one meetings and Town Hall group forum.
The company has an obligation to drill at least one exploration well in the permit off the west coast and in the permit to the north of the island, off the Victorian coast.
The company is required to submit an Environmental Plan to the regulator, the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA).
Senior Drilling Engineer ConocoPhillips Matt Smith who is part of the team visiting the island told King Island Radio: “We’re currently asking for five years’ worth of [drilling program] permission.
“That doesn’t mean five years’ worth of activity. It just means that we have a window of five years to complete the minimum works that we need to complete.
“We’re still a long way away from getting our environmental approvals. Probably another six, maybe even 12 months away. Underpinning [NOPSEMA] approval has to be responsible environmental management.
“The whole purpose, of our previous trip for the drilling activity was to come and hear people’s concerns directly from the community … we heard loud and clear, the commercial fishing implications, particularly for rock lobster fishers, and that extended to kelp farmers as well.”
Mr Smith said the company has been assessing the information heard so far and have had ongoing discussions with locals to work out ways to work together.
Mr Smith said that another concern raised was associated with unexploded ordinance and management of any risks from possible discoveries of munitions dumps and the company is working with the Department of Defence and islanders to address any risks.
Additional planning and management measures are around interactions with marine fauna and with sensitive whale species such as the Southern Right and Blue Whales.
“One overriding matter raised across all the previous consultations was people questioning the benefit to King Island and what could they be opening themselves up for with these drilling activities.
“We had some robust discussions. We have taken these questions away and assessed, and we will communicate a bit more about these in the next [today’s] sessions.
“… respect is central to what we’re trying to achieve here, which includes coming out and giving people the opportunity to have their say and make sure their voice is heard.
“I’ve been working on this environment plan for probably a year or more, and we’ve done trips to King Island. We’ve done trips across the Victorian coastline.
“I’m just so impressed by the amount of knowledge, the time people have given us and the information about environmental sensitivities, that really allow me as an environmental practitioner to go away and do a much better job in my impact assessment because I’m learning things from people in the community that I just can’t learn from a textbook or sitting on Google for hours or whatever it is.
“Listening to the community improves the predictive accuracy of our impact assessments and really gives understanding how the community is affected.
“The purpose of this visit is to come back and show the community that we’ve listened. We need to present our view on the various issues that we’ve heard and in particular share what we’re doing to manage those things,” Mr Smith said.
ConocoPhillips is seeking to identify and consult with relevant persons whose functions, interests or activities may be affected by the proposed Otway Exploration Drilling Program.
Consultation will continue after the EP submission has been made to NOPSEMA.
To find out more, stop by one of the King Island information sessions on Thursday, July 13, 2023.
For more details: https://bit.ly/3MK5PAP