James Price Point, located outside Broome in northwestern Western Australia, is not a classically beautiful place. The rock shelf outcropping and surrounding coastal lands are strangely formed and colored. Pindan soil, washed away by rain, runs into the sea coloring the water a puke like red-orange. The exposed reef shelf that runs from the point down the bay is marked with razor edged pock-marks and ledges. It is uncomfortable to walk across and to chill on. Twenty yards or so past shore, the pindan water becomes nice and clear, although twenty yards out one can still walk through depth around three to four feet. This shallow sea-floor gradient does not make for a great swimming location. There is no shade along this stretch of coast, no shelter from the Kimberley heat.
James Price Point is an unique and interesting place for sure, but visually it cannot compare to other ocean-side spots in the Kimberley and greater Western Australia. Despite this, James Price Point is currently valued at about $30 billion, due to a massive natural gas deposit sitting just offshore, beneath the sea floor.
Western Australia is in the grips of a truly insane mining boom. Capitalizing on the state’s vast metal and mineral rich emptiness has generated ludicrous wealth. Most of these mines are located deep in the desert, far from anywhere people usually go or would even want to go; heavy industry along the coast is unprecedented. Given the success of the Western Australian mining industry, the James Price Point gas deposit has become a highly coveted resource, one that would make billions of dollars for select companies and the people who run them. Woodside Petroleum plans to spend 30 billion dollars to build a gas extraction and processing hub on the point.
Deep and Rad has visited many places more beautiful and intriguing than James Price Point. Given the chance to return to northwest Western Australia, I would probably not visit the area again, given the abundance of other epic places to explore nearby. Despite neutral feelings for the spot, Deep and Radical still seriously opposes developing James Price Point.
Woodside’s proposed gas processing hub would feature: four gas pipelines and four oil pipelines coming ashore at James Price, sixteen LNG and oil tankers, and four export pipelines. The project also entails building onsite accommodation for the eight thousand workers required for construction. Those supporting Woodside’s gas hub project claim that James Price Point is an unremarkable, even ugly, coastal strip and that developing the area would bear no real environmental cost.
Untouched and pristine land is special, no matter what it looks like. Places like James Price Point foster peaceful atmospheres and provide fleeting feelings of absolute liberty. No amount of money can provide such a feeling. (Maybe experiences like these are beyond people who value money above all else. Just a thought.) Allowing heavy industry here would potentially open up other coastal sites and natural wilderness for development.
On a more tangible note, the James Price gas hub would absolutely devastate the surrounding area. Minor ecological changes can have devastating long term effects, and Woodside’s proposed developments would introduce massive changes to the James Price environment. The project would clear 24 square kilometers of bush, destroying the habitat of several endangered plant and animal species. Construction demands dredging at least 21 million tons of sediment from the shallow coastal waters, impacting light dependent coastal life. By building a seven kilometer long breakwater, Woodside would encroach into and disturb Humpback Whale, sea turtle, and Snubfin dolphin habitats. Extensive air and water pollution will occur once the plant is built and operating. The deposits offshore from James Price Point are expendable, and when the gas runs out, the plant will remain onshore to decay and erode into the sea. Drilling for construction would also destroy a treasure trove of dinosaur footprints along what is called “the Dinosaur Highway.”
Woodside’s proposed gas hub carries implications beyond immediate environmental destruction. The Kimberley region of Western Australia (three times the size of England and home to only 41,000 people) is one of the planet’s last great wildernesses. Although the Kimberley earth possesses staggering amounts of precious metals and valuable minerals, very little resource extraction occurs there now. Kimberley locals are proud of where they live and work hard to support a lifestyle that capitalizes on the vast and untouched wilderness that surrounds them. Beyond completely devastating James Price Point, locals fear Woodside’s gas hub project would act as “the thin edge of the wedge,” and set a precedent allowing for further heavy industrialization in the Kimberley. Western Australia’s coastline is generally undeveloped, yet if Woodside’s project gets the go ahead, what would prevent further coastal industrialization?
Deep and Radical spent some time in Broome, the gateway to Kimberley and town nearest to James Price Point, where anti-Woodside sentiments are high. Gas hub supporters also live there, believing the construction of the hub would bring money into town, as the well-paid workers need a place to spend their wages. Opponents point out that an influx of construction and mining workers into Broome would transform the chill town into another Port Hedland or Karratha where “you’re either *Fluoro or you’re shit.” Not too mention that a good portion of the workers’ money would be spent on alcohol, and that violence and property damage would certainly follow (this is Australia after all).
Beyond these issues, the land surrounding James Price Point is highly significant to the local Aboriginal community. Deep and Rad is not prepared to discuss the implications of encroaching onto Indigenous lands for profit. Being a non-Australian, there are issues involved here beyond my understanding and explanatory abilities.
Despite all the arguments against the James Price Point gas hub, the powerful appeal of such a financially lucrative project may still see it through to completion. Frustratingly, more environmentally sound (and still profitable) alternatives are seemingly being ignored. The gas could be extracted offshore and piped down to Port Hedland (an already industrialized town) for processing. Low impact floating processing is also an option. As is simply leaving the gas where it is, safely stored away from our atmosphere.
The threat to James Price Point is not unique. Industrial development threatens environmental systems around the world. As long as exploiting natural resources makes money this situation will continue. Until green energy becomes more profitable than traditional fossil fuels, crusading for environmental protection will remain a losing battle. Still, it is important to spread the word about places like James Price Point. Increased global awareness and appreciation for nature will only expedite the transition to environmentally responsible energy practices.
For more information about James Price Point and protest updates check out these pages:
http://handsoffcountry.blogspot.com/
http://www.savethekimberley.com/wp/
http://www.wilderness.org.au/campaigns/kimberley
*Fluoro is Australian slang for workers wearing high visibility fluorescent clothes. All blue-collar workers are required to wear such gear. The implication here is that in town dependent on the mining industry, if you’re not connected to industry, you’re nothing.
Deep and Radical 