The Beetaloo gas field is a climate bomb. How did CSIRO modelling make it look otherwise?

Fri, 1 Dec 2023 12:07:37 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
<https://theconversation.com/the-beetaloo-gas-field-is-a-climate-bomb-how-did-csiro-modelling-make-it-look-otherwise-215711>

"Even as Australia braces for a summer of projected extreme heatwaves and
bushfires amid the intensifying climate crisis, the fossil gas industry is
gearing up for a truly enormous new fracking project in the Northern
Territory’s Beetaloo Basin.

In February, a CSIRO-backed report was published, stating Beetaloo could be
developed without adding to Australia’s net emissions. In May, the Northern
Territory government gave the green light to the project, citing the report as
evidence emissions could be “mitigated, reduced or in some cases eliminated”.

This report is important. It was produced by CSIRO’s Gas Industry Social and
Environmental Research Alliance in response to a key recommendation from the
NT’s Pepper Inquiry into fracking. That recommendation? Territory and federal
governments should “seek to ensure” no net increase in life-cycle greenhouse
gas emissions in Australia from fracking in the NT.

How could it find a massive new fossil fuel field won’t add to emissions? Our
forensic analysis of the report found it made the most optimistic assumptions
about emissions at every stage, and placed far too much faith in Australia’s
ability to offset emissions."

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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