PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (Appea) on Thursday lamented statements made by newly appointed New South Wales opposition leader Luke Foley, when he called for a moratorium on coal seam gas (CSG) in the state.

In comments made to the ABC, Foley, who replaced John Robertson as the leader of the state Labor party, said that it was time for a state-wide moratorium on CSG.

Foley was quoted as giving support for the “ring-fencing” of areas, where he said the risk of contamination from CSG operations would be too great.

“Of course there will be some areas that should be permanently off limits to CSG. Whether its our productive agricultural land or our water, its just too much of a risk,” he said.

Appea on Thursday said that Foley’s call for a moratorium on the production of the state’s gas resources and its continued politicisation of natural gas was alarming news for 1.3-million natural gas users and the natural gas industry alike.

“At a time when household and manufacturing gas bills are rising, New South Wales has a well-documented looming energy security problem,” the industry body noted, adding that the state currently imported around 95% of its gas from other states, and was facing a risk of supply shortages in the coming years.

“New South Wales has a CSG industry that has safely delivered the cleaner energy source to users for more than a decade. Yet the state continues to forego economic opportunity and the chance to breathe new life into struggling regional communities through the safe and well-understood process of producing natural gas.”

Appea said that it was disappointing that the new opposition leader had chosen to align his party with the Greens “scare campaign”, adding that comments like those made to the ABC ignored science and 60 years of demonstrated experience.

The New South Wales state government was currently overhauling its gas plan, and in November revealed that under the new agenda, the Office of Coal Seam Gas (OCSG), within the Division of Resources and Energy, would be responsible for assessment of all CSG exploration applications.

The government announced plans to pause, reset and restart gas exploration in the state, implementing a strategic framework to deliver a well-regulated CSG industry.

Under the new legislation, the entire system for petroleum exploration licences would be reset, with the New South Wales government now deciding which areas would be released for exploration, and to whom.