Draft Strategic Release Framework for Coal and Petroleum Exploration and Draft Preliminary Regional Issues Assessment Guidelines

EDO NSW submission on Strategic Release Framework and PRIA Guidelines

6 November 2015 - Download PDF

This is a submission on how the NSW Government identifies and releases new areas for coal and gas exploration. The Government’s draft Framework would be informed by a ‘Preliminary Regional Issues Analysis’, which we also comment on. Our key recommendations are:

• Implement the Preliminary Assessment and Advisory Body in legislation 
• Include independent experts and added transparency for the Advisory Body 
• Consider climate change in the Strategic Framework and Preliminary Assessment Guidelines 
• the Preliminary Assessment must go beyond existing data (adopting the precautionary principle, clear environmental assessment criteria, exclusion zones and cumulative impact assessment).