Safeguards put in place to protect communities and the environment from the impacts of coal seam gas are about to face their biggest test.
Communities across the Hunter including Gloucester, Fullerton Cove and Pokolbin know first-hand what happens when resources companies arrive to explore gas reserves located in their backyards.
This occurred under previous legislation, which allowed a resources company with an exploration licence to set up a drilling rig within 500 metres of a house.
Several wells were typically sunk in an effort to test the viability of the gas reserve.
In the case of the Gloucester pilot project, hazardous chemicals leached into groundwater during a process known as fracking.
Affected communities across the state rallied in opposition to the laws that they argued gave resources companies the right to destroy communities and the environment in the quest for profit.
In response, the state government introduced a range of measures designed to restrict the coal seam gas industry in NSW.
These included the introduction of so-called 'ring fencing' that effectively placed exclusion zones around agricultural land, including vineyards.
Two-kilometre exclusion zones were also introduced around houses.
The government also bought back several coal seam licences that had the potential to significantly impact on urban communities.
Other licences were not renewed when they expired. While these measures have stood up well, they are likely to be significantly tested as a result of the federal government's push to reinvigorate the gas industry.
Previous exploration has revealed the Hunter contains substantial amounts of coal seam gas.
Given the federal government's interest in the establishment of a gas-fired power plant at Kurri, it is logical that some of the region's gas resource could be considered as a potential fuel source.
The decision to extinguish PEL 458 in 2016 should mean that the Lower Hunter is not subject to future coal seam gas extraction.
But in the Upper Hunter a series of so-called 'zombie licences' lay dormant.
The state government must hold firm on its previous commitments to surrounding communities and the environment and ensure these licences are not reactivated in the face of political or economic pressure.
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