Minns government’s only meeting before reopening gas exploration was with fossil fuel lobby

The New South Wales government's decision to reopen gas exploration approvals for the first time in more than a decade has been met with criticism from environmental groups. According to documents released under freedom of information laws, the government's only meeting before making the decision was with the peak body for the oil and gas industry, Australian Energy Producers (AEP).

The meeting between the government and AEP took place in February, and the minister's office corresponded with AEP, the Australian Workers' Union, and Business NSW in the days leading up to the announcement. The government also wrote to other stakeholders, including Lock the Gate and NSW Farmers, on the morning of the announcement.

Environmental organisations, including Lock the Gate, have expressed surprise and concern over the decision. Lock the Gate's spokesperson, Karra Kinchela, stated that the documents provided following the freedom of information request showed

the gas industry lobby has obtained preferential access to development of the NSW government's gas exploration policy.

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The decision to reopen gas exploration has been met with criticism from the Barkandji Native Title group, who were successful in a native title claim over a 128,000 sq km area in far western NSW in 2015. The group has expressed concerns about the potential impact of gas exploration on their land and community.

The NSW government has not engaged with questions about whether it met with other stakeholders about the decision to open approvals for gas exploration licences in April.