Reference list for waterrelated coal seam gas and coal mining research

1Introduction

An expert scientific committee (now named the Independent Expert Scientific Committee on Coal Seam Gas and Large Coal Mining Development (IESC)) was established under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) in November 2012 to provide independent, expert scientific advice to decision-makers on the water-related impacts of coal seam gas and large coal mining development. The Office of Water Science (OWS) within the Department of the Environment supports the IESC, including by commissioning research to address some of the critical gaps in the scientific understanding of water-related impacts associated with coal seam gas and large coal mining activities.

This report is the third in a series of reference list reports commissioned by the Department of the Environment on the advice of the IESC. The complete reference list series will include summaries of research projects relating to the impacts of coal seam gas and large coal mining developments on water resources, currently being undertaken or completed, in a number of countries including (but not limited to) Australia, the United States of America (US), Canada, China, India, Russia and the United Kingdom (UK) since January 2000.

The objective of the reference list series is to identify relevant research projects to:

support targeted approaches to future research - that address critical gaps in the scientific understanding of water-related impacts associated with coal seam gas and large coal mining activities

provide a resource to build the scientific capability of the OWS to effectively deliver bioregional assessments, research and support the IESC in the provision of advice on development proposals to regulators.

The reference list series will also provide others, including state regulators, with project and citation information, which will enable improved understanding of the water-related impacts of coal seam gas and coal mining.

1.1Scope

Table 1. Scope of reports commissioned by OWS regarding water impacts of coal mining and coal seam gas

aquifer interconnectivity:

baseline information (water quality and quantity)

field-based and modelling approaches for assessing connectivity

groundwater flow and solute transport dynamics

disruption of surface water flow pathways:

subsidence

mine cone of depression

stream diversions

infrastructure

co-produced water and salt management (CSG) and mine water and salt management (coal mines):

aquifer injection and/or water treatment (technologies, relative cost benefit)

effect on land and water resources (including irrigation)

effect on water dependent ecosystems (streams, rivers, floodplains, wetlands, groundwater-dependent ecosystems (GDE), peat swamps)

seismicity

integrity of wells - installation, operation, decommissioning

hydraulic fracturing:

chemical - surface and groundwater quality

physical - aquitard disruption, borehole collapse

quality and reliability of water supplies, including environmental health:

mine site and gas field remediation, including well decommissioning and postmining voids

long-term impacts, including timescales for water levels to return to predevelopment levels (quality/quantity)

chemical migration and toxicity

managing salt and heavy metals

water dependent ecosystems:

prediction of potential impacts to water dependent ecosystems (streams, rivers, floodplains, wetlands, GDEs, peat swamps)

response and tolerances of water dependent ecosystems to changes in water regime (surface and groundwater quantity, seasonal patterns, variability, interactions) and water quality

mitigation measures

monitoring techniques

cumulative impact assessments.

In undertaking this research project it was recognised that research undertaken in related extractive/resource industries (e.g. CO₂ sequestration, underground coal gasification or shale gas) may sometimes inform water and water dependent ecosystem knowledge gaps in the coal seam gas and coal mining sectors. For example, CO₂ sequestration researchers have been significantly more active in the examination of water well integrity and reservoir ‘seals’. However, research from such industries was outside the scope of this project.

This report also does not include the following types of information:

research outside of Australia, Canada, China, India, Russia, UK and US

research not relevant to the impacts on water resources from coal seam gas and coal mining projects

bibliographic database of completed research

operational and compliance monitoring reports completed by mining and gas companies

policy, regulatory and legislative material

critical review of the collated material

research completed prior to July 2012 and after September 2013.