Mining firm won’t drill in Sydney suburb

Mining company Dart Energy has abandoned plans to drill a coal seam gas (CSG) well in Sydney’s inner west.

In a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange on Thursday, the company confirmed it would not undertake drilling at St Peters.

Dart said it had indicated as much in a July 2011 statement, but was speaking up in light of “media coverage regarding a decision by Marrickville Council” on CSG drilling.

The council unanimously voted on Tuesday to impose a condition prohibiting CSG mining at a site operated by recycling firm Dial-a-Dump as part of its development application

Under normal circumstances local councils have no power to block mining exploration, which is determined by the state government, but they can enforce local planning rules.

Dart holds exploration licences across Sydney, and had reportedly signed an agreement with the owner of the Holland St site to drill a CSG well.

Dial-a-Dump lawyer Christopher Biggs said the company had “no agreement with any mining company permitting exploration for, or the mining of, coal seam gas on the St Peters property”.

A parliamentary committee last week recommended that CSG exploration continue in NSW but that no new licences be issued until a “comprehensive” regulatory framework is in place.

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