Paper short abstract:

Queensland's unconventional coal seam gas (CSG) developments have created regulatory challenges. CSG projects outpaced government departments and pushed them beyond capacity. Some actors thus experienced "The State" as 'organised irresponsibility', which lead to perceptions of a partly absent state.

Paper long abstract:

The rapid development of large-scale unconventional coal seam gas (CSG) projects across Queensland has sparked an unprecedented resource boom. This boom affected numerous host regions, including the Western Downs. Among its residents and the wider public, the CSG boom has led to a variety of concerns regarding the industry's potential impacts. Due to various factors, many of those concerns, at least initially, remained unanswered. CSG projects, nonetheless, progressed rapidly, which created significant uncertainty for those with concerns. These uncertainties have been a root cause of a complex CSG risk controversy. Some actors have therefore questioned the ambiguous role of various Queensland State departments and the local council.

In this paper, I unpack this ambiguous role of "the State". I begin with an outline of the regulatory challenges created by the novel geographical and temporal dimensions of CSG developments. I subsequently develop the argument that "the State" was experienced by many actors as being outpaced by the CSG boom. Furthermore, concerns emerged about State departments and the local council operating beyond capacity in their assessment of potential impacts. This limited role does, however, stand in contrast to their responsibility of managing resource developments on the public's behalf and in its interest. Some actors consequently experienced "the State" in terms of an 'organised irresponsibility' (Beck 2005; 2009) that lead to perceptions of a partly absent state. Understanding how CSG developments challenge the regulatory apparatus can deliver important insights for the role of the state within increasingly complex energy landscapes and climate change.