The prospect of gas fracking in a pristine wilderness area in Western Australia's north has opened a fresh fault line between industry and conservation groups.Premier Roger Cook said Western Australia could be forced to allow fracking in the Kimberley region if Woodside Energy's $30 billion offshore Browse project was not developed and the state was left short of gas.Mr Cook told the Australian Financial Review that WA had a "Browse-sized hole" in its future energy needs, and renewable sources would not be able to replace the gas needed to meet demand from households and heavy industry."People need to be realistic about how we maintain our standard of living and how we can continue to be an economic powerhouse," he told the publication.The mining sector welcomed Mr Cook's remarks, with the Chamber of Minerals and Energy saying gas and the proposed Browse development were critical to WA's energy security."The premier is right: gas will be essential to keeping WA's energy system reliable and affordable for decades to come," chief executive Aaron Morey said."Browse is a no-brainer."But the premier's comments triggered an avalanche of criticism from environmental groups.The Conservation Council said WA was not facing a gas supply problem, but it did have a gas export problem.Playing off Woodside's Browse project against fracking in the Kimberley as an either-or scenario was disingenuous and misleading, the council said.Protesters descended on Parliament House on Friday, angry about the premier's comments on fracking.