SWATHES of Coventry could be used for fracking after the Government lifted a temporary ban on applications for the controversial practice that had been in place since 2019.
The method and UCG (underground coal gasification) sees land drilled to extract gas and oil from shale rock but it has been attributed to causing land destabilisation and even minor earthquakes, along with the risk of polluting water supplies and producing huge carbon emissions.
UCG is similar to fracking, exploiting coal which cannot be mined in the usual way because the seams are too deep
The British Geological Survey has previously classified a 128 square mile area which includes most of Coventry city centre, Allesley and Baginton as being suitable for UCG.
West Midlands Friends of the Earth campaigner Chris Crean was scathing of the decision.
“Shale gas extraction causes earthquakes and contributes to climate breakdown and will do almost nothing to reduce energy bills.
“Fracking is by far the most unpopular and least effective way of generating energy in the UK and has been opposed by communities wherever it has been attempted.
“Any attempt to water down the rules that help safeguard people from the threat of fracking will only fuel its unpopularity.
“If Liz Truss wants to build a strong economy for the future, she should champion home insulation and the UK’s plentiful renewable resources. They are cheap, quick to develop and are popular with the public.”
Countryside charity CPRE’s Warwickshire branch said giving fracking the green light was a ‘hideous mistake’.
Director of Campaigns and Policy Tom Fyans said: “Even if we were to go full steam ahead, which nobody wants, it wouldn’t make a dent on the cost of energy anytime soon, or ever.
“Any move to industrialise the countryside and belch yet more fumes into our carbon-soaked atmosphere will prompt a furious response from local communities, drawn out planning delays and nationwide protests.
“Proposals to offer local people discounts on their bills in exchange for environmental destruction on their doorsteps need to be seen for what they are – a feeble attempt to bribe vulnerable rural communities to accept an unpopular, unsafe and polluting activity that will destroy their tranquility.
“The answer to the fossil fuel price crisis is to reduce usage with a mass insulation drive, alongside a clean energy sprint. There has never been a better time to transform our energy infrastructure to ensure a future of abundant green power.
“Renewables are around nine times cheaper and far quicker to plug in than any alternative. Families facing the biggest drop in living standards on record need renewable energy. And it needs it to happen fast.”
Announcing the lifting of the ban on fracking, Business and Energy Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg told Parliament fracking in England would help drive down global gas prices and opposition to it was based on a misunderstanding of the science.
Ministers agreed to lift the ban but said fracking would only be allowed only with local support.
