Western Green Energy Hub plan sees scientist renew calls for Nullarbor World Heritage listing

Stefan Eberhard gives a surprising answer when asked to describe the Nullarbor.

There's no mention of treeless plains, endless saltbush, or relentless sun.

The ecologist speaks instead of electric-blue water in underground pools.

He describes giant sinkholes and enormous caverns.

Mostly, Dr Eberhard talks about caves.

The Nullarbor, which stretches hundreds of kilometres across outback Western Australia and South Australia, is home to one of the world's largest karst cave systems.

They form a sprawling underground network with some up to 35 kilometres long.

It is among the reasons experts have long urged the federal government to nominate the area for UNESCO World Heritage listing.

But while South Australia now has the Nullarbor National Park, Wilderness Protection Area and Reserve, and some are again pushing for World Heritage List nomination on that side of the border, there is little protection over Western Australia's Nullarbor.

Dr Eberhard, who has a PhD in ecology and spent his career studying caves, karst and subterranean ecosystems, said for a long time that hardly mattered as there was very little pressure on the region.

But he said the situation had now changed dramatically, with a massive new wind and solar project proposed in the area.

The Western Green Energy Hub (WGEH) would sit north of Eucla, near the South Australian border, and span more than 2 million hectares over unallocated crown land (UCL) and pastoral leases.

Project proponents InterContinental Energy (with a 46 per cent stake), CWP Global (44 per cent) and Mirning Green Energy (10 per cent) said the WGEH would produce green ammonia for export.

"This is similar in magnitude to Australia's current total generation and provides a major opportunity for domestic and international green fuel supply, and ultimately domestic power distribution, offsetting approximately 22 million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year."

It is expected the project could bring 8,000 workers to the remote region, and accommodation villages, production facilities, export infrastructure, and a desalination plant would all need to be built.

But even though the project is still very much in the planning stages, the state government looks determined for it to go ahead.

Gap in new South Coast Marine Park

The WA government's new South Coast Marine Park has a large hole in it near the South Australian border.

This is to facilitate the project's future export facilities.

The state government has also given it "Lead Agency Status", which meant it received help with approvals processes.

If the project does not go ahead, the area excluded from the new marine park will be reabsorbed.

Yet Dr Eberhard said it clearly showed development was being given priority over the environment.

"It does seem very odd," he said.

Plan to mitigate environmental impacts

WA's Environmental Protection Authority has invited initial public comment about the WGEH for just seven days, with submissions closing on Sunday.

WGEH CEO Raymond Macdonald said although the project had a large perimeter, about 95 per cent of the land would remain untouched.

"A priority of the WGEH project is 'avoidance of impact', which is fundamental in respecting the environment," Dr Macdonald said.

"This helps ensure we have no physical overlay with, nor impact on, these environments.

"Ongoing studies will continue to ensure further identification of any sensitivities and maintain our principle of avoidance."

In documents posted on the WA EPA's website, proponents say there will be buffer zones from key areas, and workers will be banned from accessing caves under penalty of dismissal.

They said they did not anticipate the project to significantly impact subterranean fauna or landforms.

But Dr Eberhard said the landscape was highly interconnected and believed the impacts of bringing such a large development and 8,000 additional people to the area would be devastating for the caves. 

A federal Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) spokesperson said a World Heritage proposal for the Nullarbor Plain would need to involve both South Australia and Western Australia, and the "free, prior and informed consent of First Nations peoples with rights and interests in the area".

Push for thorough consultation

Mirning Green Energy, which is a commercial subsidiary of native title body Mirning Traditional Lands Aboriginal Corporation (MTLAC), has a 10 per cent stake in the project.

But agreements with Mirning traditional owners are yet to be finalised.

MTLAC chairperson Shilloh Peel said it was going through Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) negotiations with the WGEH, which would then require board approval.

"Once the board approves it, we'll bring it to the Mirning community, who will have the final say on whether the Western Green Energy Hub project should move forward on Mirning Country," she said.

Ms Peel expected this decision was still a few years off.

Between now and then, she said it was committed to thorough community consultations to ensure the community was fully informed about the proposed project.

CEO Clint Shaw said it would be asking the EPA for a public environmental review.

The group also said MTLAC's board had not been approached for any discussions about World Heritage nomination.