The draft letter said Sandy Islet, a part of Scott Reef considered critical to the survival of endangered green turtles, would be threatened if the seabed subsided after Woodside extracted gas from beneath it. It said a proposal to top up the sand on the islet, where about 1,000 turtles breed each year, was a “high-risk” measure and its success was “likely to be limited”.

Woodside answer, top up sand, and drill 20km away.

The expansion of water due to ocean heating though probably means this breeding ground is already doomed without massive intervention.