Andrea Leadsom announces fracking for shale gas is banned in Britain over earthquake fears

MINISTERS were accused of running scared of voters last night after they banned all fracking for shale gas in Britain. Hydraulic fracturing - to give it it's full term -  was paused at the Preston New Road site in Lancashire after a 2.9-magnitude tremor was detected. Business Secretary Andrea Leadsom announced that the suspension will become permanent, claiming the severity of the earthquake threat from it was unknown. Fracking would only ever be allowed again in the future if new evidence emerged that it was a safe industry. The dramatic action came despite the massive potential benefits of it to the energy market supply as well as the environment from the green-friendly gas. Furious industry figures accused the Government of “spinelessness”. Sources claimed ministers made the panicked decision so as not to upset voters in a series of Tory target seats where fracking sites are planned. They include Rother Valley, Bassetlaw and North East Derbyshire. Industry bosses also told of their disappointment at the decision and accused the government of acting before an official safety report was published. The chief executive of the UK Onshore Oil and Gas umbrella group Ken Cronin said: “Hydraulic fracturing stimulation is a long-standing technology used around the world   Read More
.https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/02/fracking-banned-in-uk
 https://www.positive.news/environment/fracking-suspended-a
 https://phys.org/news/2019-11-fracking-halted-england-earthquake-uk.html