Woodside drilling convoy turned back by babies and old ladies.

Despite an undertaking last Friday by Woodside to Goolarabooloo Senior Law Man Joseph Roe that no work would be carried out this week on the site of the proposed gas processing refinery at James Price Point, Woodside went ahead and dispatched a convoy from Broome at 4.30am this morning.

The Woodside/Hagstrom convoy included: a drill rig; a large truck with tank and pumping systems; a semi trailer carrying two tracked vehicles with water tanks; an ambulance; and numerous security personnel.

The convoy turned back at Quondong this morning by a small group of concerned citizens from the Broome Community ‘NO GAS’ who have sent out a strong message that Woodside will be opposed at every turn.

Kimberley Land Council WAKE UP

Whilst, redhand is in Africa, thought it would be a good idea to show the supporters of the proposed oil & gas at James Price Point, what their indigenous brothers & sisters are suffering under the very same companies that Kimberley Land Council wish to do deals with. They all have full time employment, its called survival.

Support Broome Arts Say No to LNG

Australia's first Aboriginal musical film Bran Nue Dae had its glamorous Australian premiere in the town of Broome with several performances by the star studded cast. The original musical play by Jimmy Chi was inspired nearly twenty years ago and was the first to draw a national and international spotlight on Broome.



Film & documentary makers, writers, poets, artists and dancers have always found Broome to be a very rich source of inspiration because of it beauty, its colour, its history, its environment, its multicultural mix, it home grown music and its ambiance. Numerous British children’s programes have been filmed and produced in Broome. The Circuit is running it second series on SBS at the moment and it was largely filmed in and around Broome with all the extras being local Broome people. Mad Bastards, a film based on the Pigram Brothers is currently in the editing room and of course Bran Nue Dae, very much Broome's love child.



However, the Tourism Social Impact Assessment Report associated to the proposed Kimberly LNG Precinct which will be the largest in the world, operating 14 processing trains (36)kms north of Broome) made no mention or recognition of Broome’s Music, Arts and Film industries. No appreciation or understanding of how these industries contributed to the development of and totally underpinned Broome's tourist brand. It was these industries that first drew attention to Broome, it was these industries that projected Broome out onto the national and international stage. And it is these industries that continue to do so to this very day.

Why was Broome’s vital Entertainment Industry, a very valued contributor to the Broome tourism coddled into the Report under the section titled food providers/entertainment? This Report that has been released has illustrated that the consultants have no understanding of the social fabric underlays of the Broome community. The report does not acknowledge or have any insight into the people or the community that committed themselves and built a viable tourism & Arts industries, over many years, out of hard work and little to no support from the State Government. Now, just when the Broome Brand is branded they wish to dismiss all this effect and expense to impose the LNG industry that will completely destroy all this hard dedicated work and write off people’s personal and our communities dreams as inconsequential.

Hands Off Country and Standing Up for the Planet

Drilling Kimberley LNG Precinct James Price Point

Drilling has commenced along the Manari Road between the Quondong Point turnoff and James Price Point by Hagstrom Drilling.
During the site selection process for the Kimberley LNG Precinct there were 3 proposed locations at James Price Point with the southernmost section located near Quondong.
Given the Shire of Broome’s approval for the installation of a meteorological tower at location “Option A”, it appears that the Kimberley LNG Precinct will be located nearer to Quondong than to James Price Point this slashes through the Lurujarri Dreaming Trail, breaking the song cycle that travels along the coast line of the western side of the Dampier Peninsula.
Last week and weekend while a tower was installed significant drilling was also underway in a number of places between James Price Point and Quondong, drilling day and at night under massive floodlights. The road has been remade in places and there has been much heavy vehicle traffic, no doubt in a hurry before the ‘wet’ season starts. In fact this part of the road is like a river during the rain - see an earlier post on Hands off country “Unique, Untouched, Spectacular” – not any more. Surveys continue including the beaches at Quondong.

At the next Shire Council meeting on Thursday 26 November, Council will consider Pro oil and gas development Councillor Jenny Bloom’s Notice of Motion to ‘acknowledge’ the State’s selection of James Price Point, to ‘recognise’ Government Policy on the Kimberley LNG Precinct, to ‘resolve to co operate and participate’ with the Government and ‘reconfirm’ an earlier resolution supporting the Port of Broome. This opposes Council’s resolutions of last December and November. The Broome community would do well to ask what information has been provided to both the Shire and to the general community for the Shire to change its view?
One wonders how much Indigenous and local employment in the construction, transport, drilling, and surveys to date?

Hands off country