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Parliamentary Questions


Question On Notice No. 206 asked in the Legislative Council on 3 August 2021 by Hon Brad Pettitt

Question Directed to the: Minister for Mental Health representing the Minister for Environment
Parliament: 41 Session: 1


Question

I refer to the revised license issued by Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) to Buru Energy Ltd on 28 January 2020 for the disposal of ‘produced formation water’ (PFW) at the company’s West Terrace 1 and West Terrace 2 petroleum wells, and I ask:
(a) have all the specified license conditions been complied with:
(i) if no to (a), which ones have not been complied with and why;
(b) has any compliance action been taken in relation to any failure to comply with license conditions as discussed in (a)(i):
(i) if no to (b), why not;
(c) what volume of PFW has Buru Energy Ltd disposed of under this revised license since it was granted by DWER in January 2020;
(d) which regulatory agency, DWER or Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS), is legally responsible for the regulation of this PFW disposal down Buru Energy Ltd’s petroleum wells;
(e) does the Environment Protection Act 1986 provide DWER with the legal authority to regulate the disposal of PFW, or other forms of contaminated waste generated in the course of petroleum activity, down petroleum wells in the Kimberley; and
(f) will the Minister table the Blina Oilfield Care and Maintenance Environment Plan, Greater Blina Oilfield Field Management Plan and the West Terrace 1 and West Terrace 2 Well Management Plans:
(i) if no to (f), why not?

Answered on 2 September 2021

Answer:

 

(a) – (b) the licence holder submitted an Annual Audit Compliance Report on 17 August 2020 for the 2019-20 reporting period, and is due to submit a further report for the 2020-21 reporting period 31 August 2021. The information available to the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation indicates that the licence holder is complaint with all conditions. 

 

(c) No discharge of Produced Formation Water was reported for the period of 1 July 2019 – 30 June 2020.

 

(d) Department of Water and Environmental Regulation

 

(e) Yes

 

(f) This question should be referred to the Minister for Mines and Petroleum