More than 1,000 people gathered at Western Australia's Parliament House on Tuesday, calling on Premier Roger Cook to ban hydraulic fracturing in the Kimberley as state and federal decisions on controversial Canning Basin gas projects approach.
Traditional Owners travelled from across the Kimberley to oppose Project Valhalla, proposed by Texan-based Black Mountain Energy, which involves drilling and fracking up to 20 exploration and appraisal wells in the national heritage-listed Martuwarra Fitzroy River catchment.
Final regulatory decisions are expected by the end of the year, or early 2027.
Environs Kimberley executive director Martin Pritchard said the rally showed the strength of community opposition.
"The Cook and Albanese governments are about to make a momentous decision on fracking that could have polluting impacts on the Kimberley for generations to come," he said.
"The thousand people who turned up at Parliament showed that the community won't back down - nothing less than a rejection of the Valhalla project and a ban on fracking will do."
Mr Pritchard said campaigners were preparing to elevate the issue during upcoming state and federal elections, with organisers targeting metropolitan seats across six electorates.
Nyikina woman Pat Riley, from Pandanus Park, who was present at the rally, said communities downstream were concerned about potential impacts on water quality.
"We don't want to see fracking in the Martuwarra Fitzroy River catchment. Our community is at the end of the river and any pollution from fracking upstream will affect us. We want a clean, healthy river," she said.
Kimberley leader Albert Wiggan urged the Premier to extend the statutory protections against fracking enjoyed by other parts of WA, arguing visitors come to experience the region's largely undisturbed natural landscapes, not industrial gas fields.
"You can't have fracking for oil and gas and have clean water. We choose clean water for our people, our plants, and our animals, not fracking," he said.
Although WA banned fracking across 98 per cent of the state, the government excluded areas including the Canning Basin when lifting its moratorium in 2019.
Approval would make Valhalla WA's first permitted fracking project since the moratorium ended.
In December 2025, the federal Independent Expert Scientific Committee warned information provided by the proponent was insufficient to assess surface and groundwater risks.
Despite these concerns, the WA Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) conditionally recommended approval in January 2026, identifying risks to the Fitzroy River, regional aquifers, Greater Bilby habitats, the West Kimberley National Heritage Place and Aboriginal cultural heritage.
The recommendation prompted a record 8,000 formal public appeals.
Opposition also extends to Buru Energy's Rafael Gas Project, referred to the EPA in October 2026.
The conventional drilling proposal would avoid fracking, with Buru claiming production could meet all Kimberley domestic gas needs by 2029.
Environs Kimberley warns Rafael's infrastructure could become a "Trojan horse for fracking", citing Buru's hydraulic fracturing at Yulleroo 2 in 2010.
Buru Executive Chairman David Maxwell rejected the connection, saying Rafael has "nothing to do with fracking at all" and the company has "put that on the shelf".
The EPA's decision on Rafael is expected by late 2026.
