James Price Point victory

Martin Pritchard

In a single-sentence to the Australian Stock Exchange on Friday, April 12, Woodside and its joint venture partners announced that they would not be building gas refineries at James Price Point on WA's Kimberley coast.

Eight years after proposing the site, 50 kms north of Broome on the Dampier Peninsula, and following a lengthy campaign against them, Woodside claimed that onshore refineries were not economically feasible. Had the gas refineries been built at James Price Point, they would have been the thin end of the wedge in industrialising the Kimberley. With all his threats, pleas and lobbying, the WA Premier, Colin Barnett, could not convince the Browse Joint Venturers or the Broome community that the site he had chosen was the best site for processing offshore gas. While Mr Barnett has left the door open for development at James Price Point, Woodside has made it clear they have no interest in the site.

This was a historic decision for the Kimberley. The region has been in industry's sights for decades. In 2005 a report, 'Developing the West Kimberley's Resources', was published by the WA Department of Industry and Resources as a mining blueprint for the region. A key element of the blueprint was a gas hub on the Kimberley coast to power mining and mineral processing industries.

Mr Barnett, a previous Minister for Resources Development and Energy, said in 2010, "Just as the Pilbara was critically important to the development of WA from the '60s, over the next 50 years the Kimberley will play a similar role." This mindset, and the blueprint, set the WA Government and industry on a collision course with the community. It was like the quest to protect the Franklin River from damming 30 years earlier.

Wrong place, wrong people, wrong community

Mr. Barnett picked a fight with the wrong community. The campaign to protect James Price Point was driven by Broome people, an eclectic mix of black and white, workers, tradies, doctors, teachers, lawyers, artists, writers, retirees, small business owners, social workers, nurses, labourers − people from all walks of life.

When residents learnt what was being proposed, they realised what they were about to lose and joined the campaign. As awareness of the plan spread, supporters from across the country mobilised. Groups of people at concerts and meetings eventually grew to 6,000 at a gathering in Melbourne, and 20,000 in Fremantle.

Dozens of arrests in Broome galvanised the community; the police's Operation Archon spent over $1 million on the James Price Point protests, and actions escalated. Woodside's private security firms could not operate covertly in Broome; protesters saw every move, then documented and publicised them through text messages and social media.

Delaying tactics by the community included blockades (including a month at 'Black Tank'), mass submissions and actions in the courts. These actions cost millions but shook shareholder and investor confidence. James Price Point was seen by multinational miners as a benchmark for proposals in the Kimberley, a case study in project failure through lack of social licence.

This was a multifaceted, organic campaign, fuelled by creativity, ingenuity and a fierce sense of independence and justice. It was driven locally, with national and international support. The significance of what has happened has yet to resonate across the nation, but you can be sure it is resonating in boardrooms across Australia and overseas. When a community stands up to protect itself against a bad proposal, it can win.

Martin Pritchard is the Director of Broome-based environment group Environs Kimberley. facebook.com/environs.kimberley