Independent Expert Scientific Committee (IESC)

The Australian Government established the Independent Expert Scientific Committee on Coal Seam Gas and Large Coal Mining Development (IESC) (link is external) in 2012 under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act). It did so in response to community concerns about the impacts of coal seam gas and coal mining on water resources such as groundwater, rivers, wetlands and springs, and to increase transparency in the regulatory process. These impacts include perceived threats to surface water and groundwater quality.