Canadian firm Vermilion judged the chance of the December spill as "rare" - the same probability it claims for seven planned exploration wells that could affect anywhere along the Pilbara coast.
Chief executive Bill Oplinger told Wall Street the miner had responded to all 60,000 comments on its WA expansion plans—in fact, it responded to fewer than 10, and some were unacceptable.
The WA government will soon decide whether Black Mountain Energy can frack 20 wells near the Kimberley's Fitzroy River, but promised measures to protect the environment and the rights of local people are not yet in place.
Amber-Jade Sanderson has been the WA Labor minister for energy and decarbonisation since 2025. In 2021 she was minister for environment and climate action.
WA's EPA is now restraining growth in carbon emissions from industry but it and State and Federal Governments need to do more to keep the State attractive to increasingly climate-concerned investors.
On July 18 Chevron will be millions of tonnes short of required CO2 injection at Gorgon LNG. If the WA Government stands firm the carbon credit bill could approach $100 million.
