APPEA: ‘We want CSG’ Campaign Launched (Australia)

Australia’s coal seam gas (CSG) producers today launch a major information campaign focussing on the investment, jobs, environmental benefits, and enormous opportunities that this industry generates.

Produced by the Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA), the apolitical campaign will show how CSG is today providing much needed opportunities for regional communities throughout NSW and Queensland at a time of economic insecurity.

Rick Wilkinson, APPEA’s Chief Operating Officer – Eastern Australia, said: “Our strong community feedback is that people want CSG and they’re increasingly frustrated that until now, the loudest voices in Australia’s energy debate have largely been alarmist and their claims unsubstantiated.

“This campaign marks the re-emergence of a fact-based energy security debate in Australia and gives voice to the many Australians who want new jobs, cleaner energy, and the revitalisation of regional communities that comes with the gas industry’s expansion.”

For an initial period of 4-5 weeks, the ‘We want CSG’ campaign will highlight how:

·     Using more gas can help reduce global CO2 emissions;

·     Regional communities are thriving thanks to the CSG industry;

·     Gas production has a much smaller footprint than other energy sources;

·     The CSG industry can and does co-exist with other industries; and,

·     The CSG industry will help fund the new services and infrastructure needed throughout NSW and Queensland in the decades ahead.

The ‘We want CSG’ campaign is backed by some of Australia’s largest energy companies including AGL, Santos, and Origin Energy, and by major foreign investors such as British Gas, PetroChina, Shell, and ConocoPhillips.

Mr Wilkinson said: “This campaign is built on facts and based on the voices of the many Australians, small businesses, and local communities who want the benefits associated with a thriving gas industry.

“It will also mean that the broader community will get the facts – not myths – about CSG, the industry’s operations, and the critical role gas can play in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”

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Source: APPEA, September 4, 2011;