Companies target Stoke-on-Trent for fracking exploration site

This week the UK’s Oil & Gas Authority announced 27 more locations across the country were to be offered to companies wanting to frack for shale oil and gas. Here we offer our thoughts about the implications for Stoke-on-Trent

IT’S a method that divides the British public into two camps. You’re either for it or you’re against it.

Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, is the process of drilling into the earth and directing high-pressure fluid at subterranean rocks in order to extract gas and oil. In America, it’s been hailed as a much-needed shot in the arm for energy companies.

In the UK, some politicians argue that it’s the solution to depleting levels of fossil fuels and could provide thousands of jobs in the future.

This week we’ve been told that the Oil & Gas Authority has released 27 more sites across the country where firms are able to apply to frack for oil and gas.

The additional locations named by the Government agency on Tuesday include areas in the North East and the Midlands – with Stoke-on-Trent being one of the ‘blocks’ already earmarked for exploration.

It’s not surprising that the Government is backing the move.

UK Energy Minister Lord Bourne said: “Keeping the lights on and powering the economy is not negotiable, and these industries will play a key part in providing secure and reliable energy to UK homes and businesses for decades to come.”

At this point, we should underline that fracking is subject to local planning consent so there’s no certainty that these applications will ever come to fruition – although there has been some recent relaxation in planning regulations.

So why is it a process that attracts such controversy?

For a start, it has sparked worries about the environment. The BBC quotes Greenpeace campaigner Daisy Sands as sounding “the starting gun to the fight for the future of our countryside.”

There have been concerns about the huge amount of water used in fracking, air pollution and possible groundwater contamination – all of which carry an evident environmental cost.

Then there have been fears about ‘induced seismicity’, or tremors brought about by fracking.

Certainly more scientific research is needed into the true impact of so-called ‘shale shock’. As reported in The Sentinel, our very own Keele University is conducting a study into the potential hazards attached to fracking.

Most worrying of all is the fact that the Government is not properly investing in renewable energy as a credible alternative to fossil fuels.

When we should be thinking about sustainable ways to provide energy, it seems to some campaigners that we’re focusing too heavily on a short-term distraction.

Of course people need reasonably priced energy. We understand that rising bills are a real concern.

However, here at Noreus Solutions we’d like to see more investment in proven renewables alongside speculative technology. We’d also like more research about the true impact of fracking.

After all, once invasive changes to our countryside have taken place, we can’t easily turn back the clock.

To see how you could make your home more environmentally friendly AND save money on your household bills, contact us now on 01782 756995.