WEBVTT - Did a green dream poison this pristine valley?

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<v Speaker 1>From The Australian. Here's what's on the front. I'm Christinamiot.

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<v Speaker 1>It's Monday, December eighth, twenty twenty five. Foreign Minister Penny

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<v Speaker 1>Wong and Defense Minister Richard Miles are off to Washington,

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<v Speaker 1>DC this week. They're in town for high level talks

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<v Speaker 1>about the Aucust Military Pact, but they'll be feeling the

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<v Speaker 1>pressure to bolster defense spending after the White House released

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<v Speaker 1>its new national security strategy. That story's live right now

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<v Speaker 1>at the Australian dot com dot AU. A peaceful valley

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<v Speaker 1>was meant to become a renewable energy hotspot, but farmers

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<v Speaker 1>say their water has been poisoned today when a green

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<v Speaker 1>energy dream goes wrong. About twenty five minutes drive west

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<v Speaker 1>of Mackay in Queensland lies the picturesque Pioneer Valley, one

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<v Speaker 1>of the state's oldest farming communities. It's where rolling green

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<v Speaker 1>hills boorder, sugar cane fields and platypum swim under glittering

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<v Speaker 1>waterfalls in the National Park. But families who farmed this

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<v Speaker 1>land for years say their fresh, clean groundwater has been

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<v Speaker 1>contaminated by a defunct green energy project proposed by the

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<v Speaker 1>former State Labor government, and now no one will tell

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<v Speaker 1>them what's going on.

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<v Speaker 2>Over the next one hundred years, Queensland's competitiveness will be

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<v Speaker 2>on an entirely different focus, relying on harnessing, moving, and

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<v Speaker 2>storing renewable energy.

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<v Speaker 1>This is a speech given by the former Queensland Premier

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<v Speaker 1>and a state of palichet in twenty twenty two.

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<v Speaker 2>To put that in the language of sport, this isn't

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<v Speaker 2>a sprint or even a marathon, It's a triathlon.

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<v Speaker 1>The grand was this cut greenhouse gas emissions by seventy percent,

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<v Speaker 1>triple the number of renewables projects, and accelerate the closure

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<v Speaker 1>of Queensland's coal fired power stations. The former Labor government

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<v Speaker 1>said two huge pumped hydro projects were vital to achieving

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<v Speaker 1>those goals.

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<v Speaker 2>I prefer to call it the Battery of the North.

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<v Speaker 2>It will be the largest pumped hydro storage in the world,

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<v Speaker 2>with five gigawatts of twenty four hour storage and the

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<v Speaker 2>potential for Stage one to be completed by twenty thirty two.

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<v Speaker 2>These are projects of national significance on a scale not

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<v Speaker 2>seen since the construction of Snowy Hydro. Bigger than Snowy Hydro.

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<v Speaker 1>So a taxpayer funded organization called Queensland Hydro was established

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<v Speaker 1>to develop the five gigawat Pioneer Bertekin pumped hydro project

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<v Speaker 1>in the Pioneer Valley and another southwest of NUSA, but

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<v Speaker 1>the Palochet government didn't do its homework, and just days

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<v Speaker 1>after the twenty twenty four state election, and despite a

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<v Speaker 1>taxpayer cash splash on fifty properties in the region, a

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<v Speaker 1>long delayed report deemed the multi billion dollar project commercially unviable.

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<v Speaker 1>It was subsequently shelved by David Chrisofoli's victorious Liberal government.

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<v Speaker 3>So we've spoken to a number of landholders across the

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<v Speaker 3>Pioneer Valley and what they're telling us is that their

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<v Speaker 3>wells and their dams that they draw their drinking supply

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<v Speaker 3>and use for irrigation has been contaminated.

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<v Speaker 1>Michael McKenna is The Australian's Queensland Editor.

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<v Speaker 3>There was tubidity in the water of the wells, there

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<v Speaker 3>was discoloration in the drinking water dams, and most recently

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<v Speaker 3>there's been a black mark, an oily substance that has

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<v Speaker 3>come from the bottom of these wells. Some of the

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<v Speaker 3>landholders have sent their water off for testing and they

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<v Speaker 3>report and I have seen these test results, and they

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<v Speaker 3>show that there's dangerous levels of aluminium, iron, and manganese,

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<v Speaker 3>as well as the Ecla bacteria that has been found

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<v Speaker 3>in their water supply. The first signs of this was

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<v Speaker 3>happening when there was actual drilling being conducted on the

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<v Speaker 3>land for the Pioneer Bertican project. But these problems have

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<v Speaker 3>continued to occur, and I have spoken to landholders going

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<v Speaker 3>back about fifty or sixty years. I've tracked down people

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<v Speaker 3>that grew up on the properties. On one of the

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<v Speaker 3>worst affected properties, he's a seventy year old man, Bernie Mansell,

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<v Speaker 3>and he lived on the property and farmed it for

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<v Speaker 3>sugarcane for decades. And he and a couple of others

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<v Speaker 3>that took over this land after he sold it have

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<v Speaker 3>said that there was never any discolouration, There was no

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<v Speaker 3>problem with the well and certainly no contamination.

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<v Speaker 1>Hydro Geologists privately hired to look into the alleged contamination

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<v Speaker 1>have linked it to exploratory drilling conducted before the Pioneer

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<v Speaker 1>Burkin project was canned. That's where experts drilled deep into

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<v Speaker 1>the earth to understand what they're working with. In this case,

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<v Speaker 1>almost a kilometer. According to public records. What does Queensland

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<v Speaker 1>Hydro say about that alleged contamination.

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<v Speaker 3>So they've denied any responsibility for the alleged contamination in

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<v Speaker 3>any of the water supplies in the Pioneer Valley. They

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<v Speaker 3>have looked at one of the worst affected properties and

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<v Speaker 3>looked at the test results and done some field work.

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<v Speaker 3>What they have said, or what their findings are is

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<v Speaker 3>that these metals were already evident in the ground, and

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<v Speaker 3>they're suggesting that the contamination or the dangerous levels of

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<v Speaker 3>the metals and also the existence of the E. Colon

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<v Speaker 3>bacteria is as a result of heavy rain events that

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<v Speaker 3>occurred earlier this year, and that it stirred up some

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<v Speaker 3>of this material in the ground and that it washed

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<v Speaker 3>down the hill and into the wells now. I have

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<v Speaker 3>spoken to landholders. There's been two landholders and another farmer

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<v Speaker 3>that have leased this property over the last fifty years.

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<v Speaker 3>I've spoken to all three of them and they dismissed

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<v Speaker 3>this suggestion. They're saying that there has always been heavy

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<v Speaker 3>rain in this area, but going back those decades, they

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<v Speaker 3>have never seen what has happened the discoloration, the tubidity,

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<v Speaker 3>and certainly the contamination in that well and in the

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<v Speaker 3>surrounding waterspy that it has never happened before.

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<v Speaker 1>You've spoken to people who, as you said, have lived

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<v Speaker 1>on and farmed this land for many, many decades. How

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<v Speaker 1>has this situation affected the king comunity in Pioneer Valley.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, right from the beginning, this project has split the community.

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<v Speaker 3>You've got to understand that there was no full warning.

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<v Speaker 3>One day, they were going about their business, they were

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<v Speaker 3>farming their land. It was this tight net small community.

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<v Speaker 3>And the next they heard on the news that their valley,

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<v Speaker 3>which is one of the most pristine, beautiful valleys, it

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<v Speaker 3>sits under the Jungella National Park. It's a boxed in

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<v Speaker 3>valley that they found out that it was going to

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<v Speaker 3>be flooded and filled with water to create this massive

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<v Speaker 3>mammoth pump hydro project. Now, some of the landholders were

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<v Speaker 3>able to sell their property. They were moving into retirement

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<v Speaker 3>and they sold it at a premium. Others wanted to

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<v Speaker 3>stay and want to continue on with their farming. But

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<v Speaker 3>while this process was going on, I've been told that

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<v Speaker 3>Queensland Hydro wasn't public about the prices that were being

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<v Speaker 3>offered on each of the properties, that there was non

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<v Speaker 3>disclosure agreements that were put on those that had sold

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<v Speaker 3>there was suspicion. And then up above there are people

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<v Speaker 3>who live in and around the national park, the Yungella

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<v Speaker 3>National Park who was so concerned about the impact on

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<v Speaker 3>the spring water and the waterways up there, which is

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<v Speaker 3>full of platypus. And so this project has pitted people

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<v Speaker 3>against each other in the community. I have been told

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<v Speaker 3>repeatedly that this has caused division within the community, and

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<v Speaker 3>particularly the contamination. There's a lot of angst. I've spoken

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<v Speaker 3>to farmers who say that they haven't been able to

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<v Speaker 3>sleep at night. These are people that have worked the

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<v Speaker 3>land for decades and they've built up their enterprise. The

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<v Speaker 3>local MP for the area, Glenn Kelly, has confirmed to

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<v Speaker 3>me that he has spoken to people who believe that

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<v Speaker 3>their lands contaminated, but they're afraid of what it would

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<v Speaker 3>do to the value of their land.

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<v Speaker 1>So why do it at all.

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<v Speaker 3>When you look at the policy that was announced in

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<v Speaker 3>September twenty twenty two, both in the ambition and the

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<v Speaker 3>size of the policy, timing is important. The Greens had

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<v Speaker 3>won seats at the federal election. State Labor was down

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<v Speaker 3>in the polls and the Greens were up in the

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<v Speaker 3>state Poles and Anastasia Poloshe who was in her third term,

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<v Speaker 3>wanted something to recharge her leadership, and this I've been

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<v Speaker 3>led to believe it was both the parent and what

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<v Speaker 3>I've understood from speaking to people inside the government at

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<v Speaker 3>the time is that this was what was supposed to

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<v Speaker 3>carry her through to the October twenty twenty four election.

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<v Speaker 3>And also they say more importantly, wedged the Liberal National

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<v Speaker 3>Party government because they would probably have some concerns about

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<v Speaker 3>the projects and they could have a point of distinction

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<v Speaker 3>from the Liberal National.

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<v Speaker 1>Party coming up, how Pioneer Valley residents are being kept

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<v Speaker 1>in the dark. Joe Bijaya has been farming ultra sweet

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<v Speaker 1>sugar cane in the Pioneer Valley for three decades. He's

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<v Speaker 1>had the water on three of his four properties independently tested,

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<v Speaker 1>and preliminary findings in a draft report by a hydrogeologist

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<v Speaker 1>support his suspicions that alleged contamination was caused by exploratory drilling,

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<v Speaker 1>but he says Queensland Hydro won't share results from testing

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<v Speaker 1>it conducted before drilling started.

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<v Speaker 3>Essentially, he's looking for a base to see what the

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<v Speaker 3>water was and whether there was any of these alleged

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<v Speaker 3>contaminants in the water before the drilling was done, so

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<v Speaker 3>he can compare them with the results that he's independently

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<v Speaker 3>got that shows that there are dangerous levels. Now, he

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<v Speaker 3>tells me he has repeatedly asked for these results, his

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<v Speaker 3>initial test results, and he has never been given those results.

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<v Speaker 3>But there is certainly a line of behavior from Queensland

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<v Speaker 3>Hydro that I have seen since the project was announced

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<v Speaker 3>in September twenty twenty two that shows that well, Queensland

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<v Speaker 3>Hydro was saying that they were transparent and they wanted

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<v Speaker 3>to constantly keep the community informed. That there are some

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<v Speaker 3>things that they held back. You can see it in

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<v Speaker 3>the way that they dealt with landholders individually separately and

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<v Speaker 3>didn't tell each of their neighbors and the like of

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<v Speaker 3>the buy up of land or the progress of the project.

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<v Speaker 3>And now with the alleged contamination, Michaels hit a wall too.

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<v Speaker 3>So a couple of months ago I put in a

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<v Speaker 3>right to information requests for documents that related to Queensland

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<v Speaker 3>Hydro and specifically it's correspondence with the then Labor government.

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<v Speaker 3>I was trying to ascertain what Queensland Hydro what they

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<v Speaker 3>were telling the government about the progress and problems with

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<v Speaker 3>the Pioneer Ertican project, and I was met with a

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<v Speaker 3>wall of secrecy. Essentially, this is internal correspondence about the

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<v Speaker 3>progress and problems of the project. But I have been

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<v Speaker 3>refused to access to the majority of those documents on

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<v Speaker 3>the basis that there was a deed a confidentiality agreement

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<v Speaker 3>that was struck between the entities which allowed them to

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<v Speaker 3>block the public release of any of these documents. This

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<v Speaker 3>agreement between the then Queensland Government and Queensland Hydro is

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<v Speaker 3>highly unusual, and moreover, in the legal fight that I've

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<v Speaker 3>been having with the government and Queensland Hydro over their

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<v Speaker 3>blocking of these documents, that the provisions also prevent them

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<v Speaker 3>from telling me why they're blocking it and why the

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<v Speaker 3>confidentiality agreement was struck. In my twenty five years of

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<v Speaker 3>covering state and federal governments, I have never seen an

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<v Speaker 3>agreement like this that effectively ensures that we the public

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<v Speaker 3>do not get access into the secrets of this project.

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<v Speaker 3>There are often provisions or causes to stop access to

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<v Speaker 3>what they call deliberative documents in cabinet, which allows the

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<v Speaker 3>cabinet to openly consider a project. But I was seeking

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<v Speaker 3>correspondence between a government, a taxpayer owned entity and the

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<v Speaker 3>government about a project they're building for the benefit of Queenslanders,

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<v Speaker 3>and they have used, as very unusual this rare contract

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<v Speaker 3>to block any access to anyone to find out what

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<v Speaker 3>it's about.

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<v Speaker 1>Michael McKenna is The Australian's Queensland Editor. You can read

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<v Speaker 1>his full investigation, plus see photos, videos and more at

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<v Speaker 1>the Australian dot com dot au