Jim Smith has been running eco-tours on Darwin Harbour for 16 years.
During that time, he’s seen a second gas plant and other new industries built on the increasingly busy harbour.
“Things like dolphins and so forth are less prevalent, and things seem to be in decline, but there’s also more people here,” he said.
Another development could soon follow, with the Northern Territory government spearheading plans to develop a manufacturing and minerals precinct in Middle Arm, south of Darwin and about three kilometres from residential homes in the nearby satellite city of Palmerston.
The proposal includes a petrochemicals manufacturing facility, which would convert natural gas into products like plastics and paint.
The NT government is planning for the precinct to provide a secondary market for gas from the Beetaloo Basin.
It has secured a $1.5 billion dollar commitment from the Albanese Government, Federal Labor’s biggest election commitment to the NT, to help build it.
“We need industry to provide jobs, but there is aquaculture here, there’s people that forage for food,” Mr Smith said.
“I don’t want that to be damaged by new parts of the community, in this case petrochemical industry.”
US expert warns of potential risks
A risk assessment report the government was required to submit under the environmental approvals process — released in April — found there was potential for “significant impacts to air quality” and it could cause “significant impacts to marine ecosystems and threatened species” including dolphins and dugongs.
The report also said an industrial precinct in the area could cause “significant adverse impacts to human health”, however it judged this risk as “uncertain”.
