Assessing and reducing the environmental impact of onshore geophysical surveys

Protecting the natural environment is becoming increasingly important, with a January 2020 Ipsos poll finding that Australians consider the environment a top national concern. Nationally, the environment is protected through the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) which was first introduced in 1999 and has been amended numerous times since. The EPBC act is primarily concerned with protecting areas of national environmental significance and similar legislation exists at the state level. Coupled with an increasing emphasis on environmental protection is an increased awareness of the effects of climate change. To support the energy transition, there is a need for extractive industries to supply the critical resource required. These activities must be performed under increasing regulatory compliance and consider community concerns. Effectively doing so requires the application of exploration technologies, particularly geophysical techniques, that both minimize geological uncertainty and adhere to environmental requirements. As the requirements for geophysical imaging increase (particularly the increased popularity of the seismic method for mineral exploration), their potential direct environmental impact also increases. In this paper we outline the current environmental restrictions applied to the acquisition of onshore geophysical surveys, in particular surface seismic. We then discuss how the environmental impact can be reduced through the application of new technology and careful survey planning.