Dr Shay Dougall Details

I am a Work Health and Safety (WHS) professional, researcher, and independent expert witness with over 25 years’ experience across the energy, manufacturing, and agricultural sectors. I specialise in assessing physical and psychosocial hazards, regulatory compliance, and the application of WHS frameworks to disintermediated workplaces such as farms hosting co-located industrial infrastructure.

I hold a Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Griffith University), a Master of Occupational Health, Safety and Environmental Management (Australian Catholic University), and a PhD examining the interface between unconventional gas operations, host farming workplaces, and WHS governance. My research has been published in peer-reviewed journals and book chapters and has informed the development of specialist tools such as the Psychosocial Safety Climate Policy Scorecard for integrating WHS into land use governance.

Independent Expert Witness Services

In my capacity as an expert witness, I provide impartial, evidence-based opinions to courts, tribunals, and parties in dispute resolution. I understand and comply with the expert’s overriding duty to the Court to provide independent assistance on matters within my expertise. My opinions are based solely on my professional qualifications, experience, and analysis of the available evidence.

I am instructed to:

Assess and report on WHS risks, including psychosocial hazards, in host farming workplaces affected by industrial co-location.

Analyse regulatory frameworks, contractual arrangements, and operational practices from a WHS compliance and governance perspective.

Provide written expert reports and oral evidence consistent with court and procedural rules.

Professional Background

My WHS career began in 1994 with an energy development company capturing methane gas from landfills for electricity generation in Australia, the USA, and the UK. In 2001, I established my own HSE consultancy, providing advice to industries including wind generation, plastics manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, fabrication, and large-scale energy projects. This work included the construction phases of underground coal gasification and coal seam gas extraction projects in Queensland’s Darling Downs region.

In 2005, I moved to Chinchilla, joining a local farming family at the same time the coal seam gas industry began expanding in the region. My combined WHS and agricultural experience placed me in a unique position to observe and later document the psychosocial and operational impacts of this expansion on rural workplaces.

Research Credentials

My Master’s thesis was the first research project to identify the WHS interface between unconventional gas development and host farming. This led to my PhD, which examined the governance, regulatory, and workplace health and safety implications of co-locating industrial gas operations with agricultural enterprises. My research has contributed novel WHS frameworks and practical assessment tools for identifying, classifying, and mitigating both physical and psychosocial hazards in complex, shared work environments.

My published works include:

Dougall, S. D., Gillespie, J., Sav, A., Cortes Ramirez, J., & Haswell, M. R. (2025). Performative planning? Evaluating coexistence and procedural justice in Queensland’s gas–agriculture interface. Journal of Rural Studies, 119, 103785. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2025.103785

Dougall, S. D., Gillespie, J., Sav, A., Cortes-Ramirez, J., & Haswell, M. R. (2025). Under the pump: Are host farmers’ workplace health and safety rights forgotten in Queensland’s unconventional gas governance? Energy Research & Social Science, 127, 104250. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2025.104250

PhD Thesis (QUT) : Host Farmers: Silence at the centre of the unconventional gas people-place-law nexus

Masters Thesis : Workplace health and safety (WHS) implications for farmers hosting unconventional gas (UG) exploration & production

McCarron, G., & Dougall, S. (2021) – An overview of unconventional gas extraction in Australia – the first decade in Environmental Impacts from the Development of Unconventional Oil and Gas Reserves (Cambridge University Press).

Past Advocacy Work

Prior to commencing expert witness work, I undertook WHS-focused advocacy for rural landholders in Queensland’s Darling Downs and Maranoa regions. This work included reviewing legislative requirements, environmental authorities, and contractual documents, and engaging with gas companies on behalf of landholders. While this experience deepened my understanding of operational realities and regulatory challenges, my current role as an expert witness is entirely independent and impartial.

Future Directions

I continue to refine WHS assessment tools, contribute to peer-reviewed research, and provide independent expert analysis to inform both legal processes and policy development. My work aims to ensure that WHS obligations are fully recognised and integrated into the governance of industrial–agricultural interfaces.