The NERA Collaboration Seismic Environment Plan (CSEP) Project is seeking to achieve fundamental and long-term improvements to the way that seismic activities are planned with consideration for commercial fishing activities.
In 2018, NERA established an industry consortium to create a common framework for seismic exploration in North West Australia. The CSEP Project seeks to establish:
If approved, the common Environment Plan framework will be valid for a period of at least five years and will enable consistent assessment of environmental impacts when applying for and conducting seismic acquisition activities in the CSEP project area. In the 12 months to March 2019, approximately $887 million was spent on offshore exploration in Australia. The Carnarvon Basin, Browse and Bonaparte basins, located offshore in the North West of Australia, are Australia’s most prolific petroleum basins, with more than 60% of Australia’s oil and gas production currently sourced from North West Australia.
In recent years, long assessment timeframes have become common during the approval process. The long assessment period reduces operational flexibility, increases costs for the vessel operators and has created a significant administrative burden for stakeholders. Specific outcomes sought by the project include:
The benefits of a successful project could see improved certainty for both fishing and petroleum industries, greatly reduced consultation burden for all stakeholders, and a strategic assessment of impacts across Northern Australia.
Desired project outcomes:
Start: October 2018
End: June 2022
Total Project Cost: $852,000
NERA: $426,000
Industry: $426,000