Nimbin activists take fight to Tara

Colourful Nimbin activists Lisa Costello and Benny Zable at the gas well head on Bryce Keating’s property.

Four activists from the Nimbin Environment Centre (NEC) have been supporting Tara land owner Bryce Keating in his battle with Queensland Gas Company (QGC, owned by British Gas).

The lawyer representing Mr Keating, Peter Shannon, had a win recently when QGC stopped work after a complaint was made to the company and the state government regulator that the road being cleared was wider than the 20 metres stated in the contract and that the company was in breach of clause G6 of its environmental authority.

However, according to Lisa Costello from the NEC, QGC representatives returned on Monday, April 4 and with the assistance of Queensland Police, removed protestors from the site in the Darling Downs in South East Queensland and cleared another 40 metres around an existing two lane road up to gas head on Bryce’s property, including the clearing off marked old growth trees.

“We were devastated. This whole Tara Estate is the only bushland in the region and it was sold as lifestyle bush blocks. There is unique cypress pine forest and ironbark forest, bird life is abundant and there were kangaroos as well as possum scats and tracks,” she said.

Alan Roberts from NEC said after the blockade was broken, QGC “cleared a quarter of Bryce’s land to connect pipes to four more wells on neighbouring properties without any re-negotiation of the contract.”

“The land is now worthless for resale,” he said.

Bryce Keating has brain damage as a result of a car accident and negotiations have been done through his lawyer Peter Shannon. However Mr Shannon was not present on the day QGC returned to resume work.

Since then the protest has gathered national media attention with the arrest of Bob Irwin, wildlife campaigner and the father of late crocodile hunter Steve Irwin.

Blockade organiser Drew Hutton was due in court yesterday (Wednesday, April 13) where he has been charged with obstructing a petroleum and gas activity, however he is arguing that he was invited by the landowner and had “reasonable cause”. The case is likely to test a grey area in the law and may go all the way to the Supreme Court.