FORMER WA Labor premier and Freo resident Carmen Lawrence has added her concerns about coal seam gas fracking to author Tim Winton’s in a new pre-election advertising campaign aimed at making it a polling issue.

“Having been premier I know the challenge of plotting the best course for the state’s development, but the first duty of the government is to guarantee the safety of West Australians,” Ms Lawrence said.

“I’ve featured in this ad because fracking presents a serious risk to our water, our health and our environment – unless and until it’s proved safe, we must ban it across our state.”

• Tim Winton has added his voice to an anti-fracking advertising campaign.

Warning that the Kimberley could be “industrialised” because of the Barnett government’s support for fracking, Winton says an area six times the size of Tasmania has been set aside in WA for coal seam miners to explore.

“Traditional owners and farmers will be overridden and undermined by frackers, and the state’s precious drinking water will be compromised by thousands of gas wells,” says Winton.

Labor has promised to ban fracking in the South West and a moratorium on the industry across the state, while Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and the Greens are lock-step in their opposition. The Nationals support fracking, but want farmers to get veto rights.