Experts highlight CSG health concerns

The coal-seam gas (CSG) mining industry is downplaying the health risks caused by chemicals in ground water, three Australian experts say.

Evidence of the environmental impact is mounting, they say in a letter published by the Medical Journal of Australia.

However, the industry has consistently downplayed the risk of contamination, say Associate Professor Marion Carey from Monash University and colleagues from the University of Melbourne and the University of New South Wales.

They highlight a case in the US, where people were advised not to use well water for drinking or cooking and to ensure adequate ventilation when showering.

This followed the detection of chemicals and hydraulic fracturing fluids in an aquifer supplying a Wyoming gas-field community.

There had also been a case in NSW where elevated levels of heavy metals and uranium were detected in water near a pond holding water produced as a by-product of gas mining.

Although the food chain was not threatened in this case, it demonstrates the potential for contamination to occur, they write.

"We cannot yet be certain that all contaminants will be removed by current treatment processes."

"Australian doctors have been raising these and other health concerns about the risks of unconventional gas for some time."