By Luke Voogt
An oil spill could swamp local beaches if a proposed rig 327km off the South Australian coast goes ahead, Torquay protesters have warned.
Greater Torquay Alliance’s Damien Cole warned that a major spill at Norwegian company Equinor’s proposed rig in the Great Australian Bight would contaminate most of Australia’s southern coastline.
“I’ve grown up surfing Bells Beach and along the Great Ocean Road, and the thought of our coast being covered in oil is absolutely horrifying,” said Mr Cole, the alliance’s state candidate for South Barwon.
“If something went wrong out there in the bight it would have catastrophic effects, not only for surfing, but for tourism, fishing, and our whole way of life.“
The alliance joined Australian Greens leader Richard Di Natale to draw a line in the Bells Beach sand on Saturday against the plans.
“As a surfer and environmentalist, I know the incredible value of our coastlines,” Dr Di Natale said.
“Sadly, government seems happy to risk it all to help out their mates in the fossil fuel industry.”
The ocean at the proposed site was deeper and rougher than at a Gulf of Mexico rig that spilled in 2010, Dr Di Natale said.
But Australian Petroleum, Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) external affairs director Matthew Doman accused the Greens of running a baseless scare campaign.
“Stunts such as the Bells Beach protest, and the false and exaggerated claims made, do nothing to inform public debate,” he said.
“It’s not surprising that people in the community get worried when such sensationalist claims are put forward.”
The protesters made “hysterical claims” about a proposal more than 1000km away despite companies already safely drilling for oil at hundreds of wells in close proximity, Mr Doman said.
“It seems odd the Greens protest drilling in the Great Australian Bight on a beach in Bass Strait, a body of water that has seen over 1000 wells drilled over the last 50 years.”
The industry was committed to responding to community concerns and “genuine questions”, Mr Doman said.
An Equinor spokesperson said the company had planned for two years to ensure the rig could operate safely within “Australia’s strict environment and regulatory requirements“.
Equinor would release its own oil spill modelling at a later date but could not comment on other modelling, the spokesperson said.
The rig plus two similar projects in the Great Australian Bight will create 1361 full-time jobs during construction and provide $1.7 billion in tax revenue annually, according to an APPEA-funded study.
