In a landmark case activists are taking a US-based gas company to the Federal Court under Labor's water trigger laws.
Lock the Gate Alliance has filed a legal challenge against Tamboran B2 Pty Ltd over its plans to frack 15 gas wells in the Northern Territory's Beetaloo Basin, near the town of Daly Waters.
It will be the first legal challenge under the water trigger legislation passed by federal parliament in 2023.
An amendment to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment Act requires Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek to consider the impact of large coal mining and coal seam gas projects on water resources.
The law was intended to further scrutinise new gas and industry projects by creating a provision for ministerial approval, said Environmental Justice Australia specialist lawyer Retta Berryman
"Our national environment laws require fracking projects with a likely significant impact on water resources to be referred for federal assessment," she said.
"All companies seeking to carry out regulated activities must abide by Australian laws, and our client looks forward to having this critical issue considered by the court."
Lock the Gate claims one of the Northern Territory's largest fracking projects is likely to have a significant impact on groundwater resources and should therefore be caught by the water trigger in national environment laws.
However, Tamboran had not referred its project to the federal environment minister, despite commercial contracts to buy coal seam gas from the region being signed with the territory government and early ground works having begun.
"Lock the Gate Alliance is launching this landmark challenge to protect water from fracking because we believe Tamboran's project represents a serious risk to groundwater in the Northern Territory," Lock the Gate Alliance national co-ordinator Carmel Flint said.
"We believe Tamboran should be conducting further assessments and seeking approval from the federal environment minister before fracking is undertaken."
The court has not set a date for a hearing after the matter was filed on Friday.
