New seismic blasting project delayed as community prepares to celebrate major victory

PLANS for new seismic blasting off the south-west Victorian coast have been sent back for further review, marking the third time the offshore regulator has requested more information from geotechnical company CGG.

The delay comes amid growing opposition to offshore fossil fuel exploration.

Last year, a similar proposal in the Otway Basin collapsed after intense community and political pressure forced TGS/SLB to withdraw its application.

Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) campaign manager Louise Morris said the repeated regulatory rejections reflected increasing resistance to offshore gas projects.

“This is now the third time this plan has been sent back to the business with basically a ‘not good enough’.”

She pointed to TGS abandoning its Otway Basin project, after it also received three regulatory knockbacks, and said seismic blasting proposals were failing due to environmental concerns, poor community consultation, and a lack of public support.

AMCS is calling for an urgent federal moratorium on seismic blasting in our oceans.

CGG is seeking a Special Prospecting Authority (SPA) permit, which conservation groups argue bypasses the normal checks and balances that apply to other forms of exploration.

Ms Morris is in Canberra this week as Parliament is scheduled to debate a private member’s bill, introduced by independent MP Dr Monique Ryan and seconded by Liberal MP Bridget Archer, calling for the abolition of SPA permits.

“These permits are the cowboy permit of choice for seismic blasting,” she said.

“Each SPA permit application is assessed in isolation, last 180 days, and once a company exhausts one, they can just apply for another.”

Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson welcomed the delay but said stronger regulations were needed to prevent seismic blasting projects from being approved.

“The system is set up to approve. The NOPSEMA system, the regulations, need to be changed.

“It is not necessarily the fault of the regulator – they have a really poor framework to work in.

“They have been delaying more applications recently, but ultimately, they almost always end up getting approved.”

While seismic blasting remains a pressing issue, campaigners are taking a moment to celebrate their latest success.

The Big Ocean Boogie, to take place in Torquay on February 22, will bring together activists, residents, and conservationists.

Surfrider Foundation Australia operations manager Angus Cormick said the event was a chance to acknowledge the community’s efforts.

“It’s amazing to see the community move the dial on something like this; people from all different spaces and backgrounds put in the hard yards to protect the places they love—it really displays the power of uniting and using our voice.

“It’s not often you get a win like this so we wanted to make sure everyone can celebrate each other’s hard work.”

The event will feature live music from Pasiflorez, Suneden, and Daniel Aaron, and all proceeds will go towards Surfrider Australia’s efforts to protect Australia’s coastline.

Tickets are available via Humanitix.

The AMCS, in collaboration with other community groups, will hold a separate public event to call for an urgent moratorium on seismic blasting on March 29, at Logan Beach.