NT govt to review EDO funding over conduct during Barossa gas project challenge

The Northern Territory government will review its funding of the Environmental Defenders Office over its conduct during a Federal Court challenge to the Barossa gas project. Santos won the case, and work has now resumed on laying the pipeline from the Barossa field to Darwin, with the first gas expected to be produced early next year. In the Federal Court’s judgement, Justice Natalie Charlesworth found the EDO had “distorted and misrepresented” what Tiwi Islanders had said. “Yes, there does need to be some consequences for anybody who’s lied, particularly about something that’s so important to the Territory economy,” Northern Territory Chief Minister Eva Lawler said. “We fund them $100,000 a year, and I’ve asked Kate [Worden] to have a look at the contract and the details around that because we need to work together in partnership with the Environmental Defenders Office.”