ANTI-FRACKING CAMPAIGN
Although there have been anti-fracking campaigns for the last few years, it's only now that the public are really sitting up and taking notice. What is fracking? Fracturing rock with pressurised water to release the gases. Why is it bad? Ruins the environment, pollutes water courses, puts our water bills up and lines the pockets of the investors - all sanctioned by our government with sprinkles on top.
It's not just us crusty environmentalists that are up in arms over this, middle England are crying out in protest too. Below are links to various sources of information. Sign every petition you can to oppose fracking; write to your MP's, MEP's and the Prime Minister saying 'NO!' to fracking.
Did you know that you can sign up to an energy provider that hasn't got it's big toe in the fracking industry? Check out unfrack.me for a list of companies that offer really competitive energy prices and do not have any ties with fracking.
It's not just us crusty environmentalists that are up in arms over this, middle England are crying out in protest too. Below are links to various sources of information. Sign every petition you can to oppose fracking; write to your MP's, MEP's and the Prime Minister saying 'NO!' to fracking.
Did you know that you can sign up to an energy provider that hasn't got it's big toe in the fracking industry? Check out unfrack.me for a list of companies that offer really competitive energy prices and do not have any ties with fracking.
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Open letter to Prime Minister David Cameron by Philip Carr-Gomm
I was going to mail this letter today privately, in the remote hope that the message actually might get through to our PM who would then have a sort of ‘Road to Damascus’ moment! Reading his article in the Telegraph yesterday I now doubt this very much, so I’m still posting it, but I’ve also posted it as a comment on his article. (You can ‘like’ the comment by clicking to show the PM’s press people who read these things that others agree – if you do of course!)
11th August 2013
Dear Mr Cameron,
I can quite understand the apparent advantages of encouraging fracking, but I do urge you to consider the following points:
1. Your government seriously misjudged the concern people have for their environment when the public woodlands sale was mooted. It was very wise to back off from that project quickly.
2. The same story is repeating itself with fracking. Although people like money, when the chips are down they don’t want their countryside ruined, their roads clogged with lorries, their water and air risking pollution. They want to protect their country – if necessary from the government who promised to be the ‘greenest ever’. Remember your party has 130-177,000 members, the National Trust has 3.8 million. People really care about the countryside.
3. Offers of a million, or more correctly a hundred thousand pounds, do not seem attractive to most people. They smack of desperation, and the need to bribe a community. If you will forgive the image, it looks like a man offering sweets to children while his friends nip round the back and tip chemicals in the soil.
4. The tax breaks for fracking companies – from a PR point of view this is a disaster. The public associates tax breaks with attempts to shore up ailing industries. It gives the wrong signal, and people are starting to realise that this highlights the investment risks – that profitability is not guaranteed. Its timing is also disastrous – just as people are becoming aware of the tax-dodging by big corporations, they see that the tax payer will be effectively funding the degradation of their environment.
It’s not too late to back away from this. If you do, saving face by saying ‘We have listened to concerns’, setting up enquiries etc., and then ensuring it never happens, the British people, and history, will perceive you not as weak, but as a champion, a defender, of the landscape of Britain. If you continue to support fracking, your popularity will wane, at the first sign of problems – earth tremors, chemical spills, damage of any kind – you will lose support massively, will lose the next election, and be remembered as the man who was so weak he gave in to financial interests and the man who didn’t care about the land he was supposed to be governing.
Do please assure me that you will be taking the former rather than the latter course.
Yours faithfully,
Philip Carr-Gomm
IF YOU’D LIKE TO ADD YOUR SIGNATURE TO THIS LETTER PLEASE CLICK HERE
Read Philip's weblog
11th August 2013
Dear Mr Cameron,
I can quite understand the apparent advantages of encouraging fracking, but I do urge you to consider the following points:
1. Your government seriously misjudged the concern people have for their environment when the public woodlands sale was mooted. It was very wise to back off from that project quickly.
2. The same story is repeating itself with fracking. Although people like money, when the chips are down they don’t want their countryside ruined, their roads clogged with lorries, their water and air risking pollution. They want to protect their country – if necessary from the government who promised to be the ‘greenest ever’. Remember your party has 130-177,000 members, the National Trust has 3.8 million. People really care about the countryside.
3. Offers of a million, or more correctly a hundred thousand pounds, do not seem attractive to most people. They smack of desperation, and the need to bribe a community. If you will forgive the image, it looks like a man offering sweets to children while his friends nip round the back and tip chemicals in the soil.
4. The tax breaks for fracking companies – from a PR point of view this is a disaster. The public associates tax breaks with attempts to shore up ailing industries. It gives the wrong signal, and people are starting to realise that this highlights the investment risks – that profitability is not guaranteed. Its timing is also disastrous – just as people are becoming aware of the tax-dodging by big corporations, they see that the tax payer will be effectively funding the degradation of their environment.
It’s not too late to back away from this. If you do, saving face by saying ‘We have listened to concerns’, setting up enquiries etc., and then ensuring it never happens, the British people, and history, will perceive you not as weak, but as a champion, a defender, of the landscape of Britain. If you continue to support fracking, your popularity will wane, at the first sign of problems – earth tremors, chemical spills, damage of any kind – you will lose support massively, will lose the next election, and be remembered as the man who was so weak he gave in to financial interests and the man who didn’t care about the land he was supposed to be governing.
Do please assure me that you will be taking the former rather than the latter course.
Yours faithfully,
Philip Carr-Gomm
IF YOU’D LIKE TO ADD YOUR SIGNATURE TO THIS LETTER PLEASE CLICK HERE
Read Philip's weblog
Fracking 'threatens God's glorious creation'
Source: The Telegraph 15th August 2013
Fracking 'threatens God's glorious creation'
The Church of England has told parishioners that fracking causes environmental problems and risks lasting harm to “God’s glorious creation”.
Fracking caused earthquakes in Lancashire.
The warning has been issued to Anglicans in Lancashire, where significant work to extract gas and oil by fracking has been proposed.
The Diocese of Blackburn has published a leaflet for its flock, telling them that for Christians, fracking presents “a choice between economic gain and a healthy environment.”
The church's decision to highlight potential downsides of fracking comes as Conservative ministers step up efforts to sell the technology to voters as an economic necessity.
Fracking, which involves fracturing rocks deep underground with water and chemicals to extract oil and natural gas, has sharply cut US energy bills and imports.
Ministers say it could do the same for Britain, but campaigners and local residents are opposing fracking in several counties, warning that it does environmental harm.
The Church leaflet appears to endorse such concerns, saying: “Fracking causes a range of environmental problems.”
The leaflet does not explicitly commit the church to a clear position for or against fracking.
But its focus is on the potential for lasting environmental damage and urges believers to consider their Christian duty to act as "stewards of the earth".
It says: "The time we spend thinking, praying and acting now to protect our drinking water, and the rest of God’s glorious Creation cannot compare with the time succeeding generations could potentially spend trying to make good what will likely happen if we in the church remain uninformed and silent."
Fracking is untested and potentially harmful, the leaflet says: “A relatively new technique to extract natural gas from previously unreachable depths is prompting a rush to drill, despite virtually no history as to its environmental impact."
The leaflet does mention economic arguments for fracking, but hints that environmental concerns should trump the "temptation" to make such gains.
The prospect of profit from fracking “has lured landowners to sign or contemplate signing leases to drill on their land. This is one way they can retain their land and make money, and money in today’s world seems to count for more than environmental stability,” it says.
“The rush to benefit from the gas-drilling bonanza is an obvious temptation for many and this, of course, raises the question of how consideration for God the Creator enters into the decision-making process.”
A spokesman for Blackburn Diocese said that the leaflet was intended to inform parishioners about the complex issues involved in fracking, and not to persuade them to oppose the technology.
“Whilst the Church of England does not have an official line in any of these particular aspects of the debate, it, together with other faith communities, does have an obligation, under God, to bring a different perspective into the debate,” he said.
“This stems from a sincere conviction to take seriously the challenges of caring for God’s fragile creation. To that end, the church believes it has a responsibility to inform its parishioners of these theological and ethical perspectives to enable them to reflect and respond accordingly.”
David Cameron has pledged to make the case for fracking in all parts of the UK, but the cause has encountered resistance in Northern Ireland.
Mark Durkan, the environment minister in Belfast’s devolved administration, has said that the case for fracking has not yet been made.
Mr Durkan, who would have to approve any fracking project in Northern Ireland, said he was not yet convinced.
“I am not going to make any decision until all the facts and scientific evidence are established. To do otherwise would be reckless and irresponsible,” he said “Do we need to extract shale gas? Can it be done safely? Would it be done responsibly? These are the responsible questions. All facts are not in. The scientific evidence is far from being established.”
Fracking 'threatens God's glorious creation'
The Church of England has told parishioners that fracking causes environmental problems and risks lasting harm to “God’s glorious creation”.
Fracking caused earthquakes in Lancashire.
The warning has been issued to Anglicans in Lancashire, where significant work to extract gas and oil by fracking has been proposed.
The Diocese of Blackburn has published a leaflet for its flock, telling them that for Christians, fracking presents “a choice between economic gain and a healthy environment.”
The church's decision to highlight potential downsides of fracking comes as Conservative ministers step up efforts to sell the technology to voters as an economic necessity.
Fracking, which involves fracturing rocks deep underground with water and chemicals to extract oil and natural gas, has sharply cut US energy bills and imports.
Ministers say it could do the same for Britain, but campaigners and local residents are opposing fracking in several counties, warning that it does environmental harm.
The Church leaflet appears to endorse such concerns, saying: “Fracking causes a range of environmental problems.”
The leaflet does not explicitly commit the church to a clear position for or against fracking.
But its focus is on the potential for lasting environmental damage and urges believers to consider their Christian duty to act as "stewards of the earth".
It says: "The time we spend thinking, praying and acting now to protect our drinking water, and the rest of God’s glorious Creation cannot compare with the time succeeding generations could potentially spend trying to make good what will likely happen if we in the church remain uninformed and silent."
Fracking is untested and potentially harmful, the leaflet says: “A relatively new technique to extract natural gas from previously unreachable depths is prompting a rush to drill, despite virtually no history as to its environmental impact."
The leaflet does mention economic arguments for fracking, but hints that environmental concerns should trump the "temptation" to make such gains.
The prospect of profit from fracking “has lured landowners to sign or contemplate signing leases to drill on their land. This is one way they can retain their land and make money, and money in today’s world seems to count for more than environmental stability,” it says.
“The rush to benefit from the gas-drilling bonanza is an obvious temptation for many and this, of course, raises the question of how consideration for God the Creator enters into the decision-making process.”
A spokesman for Blackburn Diocese said that the leaflet was intended to inform parishioners about the complex issues involved in fracking, and not to persuade them to oppose the technology.
“Whilst the Church of England does not have an official line in any of these particular aspects of the debate, it, together with other faith communities, does have an obligation, under God, to bring a different perspective into the debate,” he said.
“This stems from a sincere conviction to take seriously the challenges of caring for God’s fragile creation. To that end, the church believes it has a responsibility to inform its parishioners of these theological and ethical perspectives to enable them to reflect and respond accordingly.”
David Cameron has pledged to make the case for fracking in all parts of the UK, but the cause has encountered resistance in Northern Ireland.
Mark Durkan, the environment minister in Belfast’s devolved administration, has said that the case for fracking has not yet been made.
Mr Durkan, who would have to approve any fracking project in Northern Ireland, said he was not yet convinced.
“I am not going to make any decision until all the facts and scientific evidence are established. To do otherwise would be reckless and irresponsible,” he said “Do we need to extract shale gas? Can it be done safely? Would it be done responsibly? These are the responsible questions. All facts are not in. The scientific evidence is far from being established.”
Caudilla site in Lancashire where there were reports of earthquakes
Balcombe fracking protesters in court
Source: The Guardian 14th August 2013
Balcombe fracking protesters plead not guilty to causing disruption
Eight defendants are charged over protests taking place against energy firm Cuadrilla, which is testing for shale gas in the areaEight people have pleaded not guilty to causing disruption during protests against fracking.
The defendants are charged in connection with more than two weeks of campaigning in Balcombe, West Sussex, against the energy company Cuadrilla, which is testing for shale gas in the area.
Fracking involves the pumping of high pressure liquid deep underground to split shale rock and release gas, which according to opponents could potentially cause water contamination, small-scale earthquakes and environmental damage.
Teacher Frances Crack, 31, from Cardiff; Samantha Duncan, 29, from Brighton, East Sussex; circus employee Ezra Lynch, 31, from Lewes, East Sussex; Mark Mansbridge, 51, a voluntary charity worker from Lewes; Richard Millar, 29, from Brighton; Justin Preece, from Mid Glamorgan; Nancy Walker, 25, from London; and Marcin Swiercz, 35, a handyman from London, are all charged under Section 241 of the Trade Union Labour Relations Act with attempting to stop drivers and other workers from accessing the site on 26 July.
They are alleged to have placed a log in the road, blocking access to the site, and refused to move it, the court heard.
The defendants were joined by about 30 supporters in the public gallery and dozens outside at Crawley magistrates court.
Prosecutor Brian Noel asked for the case to be adjourned until 2 October, when a district judge will be available to preside over proceedings.
Lydia Dagostino, defending, asked that all those charged be excused from the next court hearing.
She said: "There are other defendants coming up this afternoon and in the coming weeks on 21 and 28 August.
"It will become unmanageable if we have 30-plus defendants in court."
Sussex police and the Crown Prosecution Service asked magistrates to impose a bail condition on all defendants banning them from entering the parish of Balcombe, except when travelling through the area on the London to Brighton railway line.
PC Michael Wyborn said police had become aware of a climate camp planning to move to the Balcombe area from the north of the country.
He told the court they were expecting an influx of between 250 and 1,000 people.
He said: "They intend to hold a general meeting in the Balcombe area and tend to publicise their causes by media."
Dagostino said: "These conditions are completely disproportionate and oppressive and a clear breach of the right to protest."
The case was adjourned until after lunch.
Balcombe fracking protesters plead not guilty to causing disruption
Eight defendants are charged over protests taking place against energy firm Cuadrilla, which is testing for shale gas in the areaEight people have pleaded not guilty to causing disruption during protests against fracking.
The defendants are charged in connection with more than two weeks of campaigning in Balcombe, West Sussex, against the energy company Cuadrilla, which is testing for shale gas in the area.
Fracking involves the pumping of high pressure liquid deep underground to split shale rock and release gas, which according to opponents could potentially cause water contamination, small-scale earthquakes and environmental damage.
Teacher Frances Crack, 31, from Cardiff; Samantha Duncan, 29, from Brighton, East Sussex; circus employee Ezra Lynch, 31, from Lewes, East Sussex; Mark Mansbridge, 51, a voluntary charity worker from Lewes; Richard Millar, 29, from Brighton; Justin Preece, from Mid Glamorgan; Nancy Walker, 25, from London; and Marcin Swiercz, 35, a handyman from London, are all charged under Section 241 of the Trade Union Labour Relations Act with attempting to stop drivers and other workers from accessing the site on 26 July.
They are alleged to have placed a log in the road, blocking access to the site, and refused to move it, the court heard.
The defendants were joined by about 30 supporters in the public gallery and dozens outside at Crawley magistrates court.
Prosecutor Brian Noel asked for the case to be adjourned until 2 October, when a district judge will be available to preside over proceedings.
Lydia Dagostino, defending, asked that all those charged be excused from the next court hearing.
She said: "There are other defendants coming up this afternoon and in the coming weeks on 21 and 28 August.
"It will become unmanageable if we have 30-plus defendants in court."
Sussex police and the Crown Prosecution Service asked magistrates to impose a bail condition on all defendants banning them from entering the parish of Balcombe, except when travelling through the area on the London to Brighton railway line.
PC Michael Wyborn said police had become aware of a climate camp planning to move to the Balcombe area from the north of the country.
He told the court they were expecting an influx of between 250 and 1,000 people.
He said: "They intend to hold a general meeting in the Balcombe area and tend to publicise their causes by media."
Dagostino said: "These conditions are completely disproportionate and oppressive and a clear breach of the right to protest."
The case was adjourned until after lunch.
National protest at Balcombe planned
Source: Bristol 24/7 15th August 2013
Fracking campaigners aim to join national protest
Campaigners against the use of fracking are calling on opponents in Bristol to travel to Balcombe – the Sussex village at heart of anti-fracking protests
Campaigners against the use of fracking are calling on opponents of the gas drilling scheme near Bristol to travel to Balcombe – the Sussex village at the heart of anti-fracking protests.
Fracking involves drilling into rock and pumping in liquid at high pressure to split it, releasing trapped shale gas which is collected for fuel.
Welsh firm UK Methane is hoping to get planning permission for a production facility at Hicks Gate, near Keynsham, to look for coalbed methane.
But Frack Free Somerset is hoping to organise a campaign against the controversial method, and is organising opponents to travel to Balcombe this Sunday.
The move comes after the prime minister yesterday urged the UK to back fracking, saying the country needs to share in the energy benefits and need not worry about environmental concerns.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, David Cameron said: “I want all parts of our nation to share in the benefits: north or south, Conservative or Labour.
“If neighbourhoods can really see the benefits – and get proper reassurance about the environment – then I don’t see why fracking shouldn’t get real public support.”
Fracking has transformed the energy market in the United States, cutting costs for households and businesses, and ministers hope for a similar effect in the UK.
Mr Cameron said it had “real potential to drive energy bills down” and insisted the government was not “turning our back” on low carbon generation but needed to secure a mix of energy sources.
But Frack Free Somerset said the evidence from a Friends of the Earth study showed the shale gas extracted by fracking could at best only represent 2-3% of the European gas demand in 2030, and could be up to three times more expensive to develop compared to the US.
It added that, in the US, cheaper gas prices had come about because the recession has caused lower demand for energy, and there was a glut of gas depressing the market.
For more information about the protest this weekend, visit the Frack Free Somerset website…
Fracking campaigners aim to join national protest
Campaigners against the use of fracking are calling on opponents in Bristol to travel to Balcombe – the Sussex village at heart of anti-fracking protests
Campaigners against the use of fracking are calling on opponents of the gas drilling scheme near Bristol to travel to Balcombe – the Sussex village at the heart of anti-fracking protests.
Fracking involves drilling into rock and pumping in liquid at high pressure to split it, releasing trapped shale gas which is collected for fuel.
Welsh firm UK Methane is hoping to get planning permission for a production facility at Hicks Gate, near Keynsham, to look for coalbed methane.
But Frack Free Somerset is hoping to organise a campaign against the controversial method, and is organising opponents to travel to Balcombe this Sunday.
The move comes after the prime minister yesterday urged the UK to back fracking, saying the country needs to share in the energy benefits and need not worry about environmental concerns.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, David Cameron said: “I want all parts of our nation to share in the benefits: north or south, Conservative or Labour.
“If neighbourhoods can really see the benefits – and get proper reassurance about the environment – then I don’t see why fracking shouldn’t get real public support.”
Fracking has transformed the energy market in the United States, cutting costs for households and businesses, and ministers hope for a similar effect in the UK.
Mr Cameron said it had “real potential to drive energy bills down” and insisted the government was not “turning our back” on low carbon generation but needed to secure a mix of energy sources.
But Frack Free Somerset said the evidence from a Friends of the Earth study showed the shale gas extracted by fracking could at best only represent 2-3% of the European gas demand in 2030, and could be up to three times more expensive to develop compared to the US.
It added that, in the US, cheaper gas prices had come about because the recession has caused lower demand for energy, and there was a glut of gas depressing the market.
For more information about the protest this weekend, visit the Frack Free Somerset website…
Balcombe villagers protest
Source: BBC News 3rd August 2013
Villagers from Balcombe march to visit the protest site
Villagers from an area in West Sussex where protests have been taking place against oil exploration have walked to meet the campaigners.
The demonstration in Balcombe is now in its 10th day but energy firm Cuadrilla began drilling at the site on Friday after being held up by the protests.
Campaigners fear the test drilling could lead to hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking.
More than 100 Balcombe residents walked from the village to the protest site.
Helen Savage said: "Local villagers wanted to meet the protesters.
'Poisonous process'
"Overwhelmingly we are against fracking and it is important to get our views across.
"We want our land to remain frack-free."
It was billed not as a protest march but as a weekend stroll.
One of the villagers said that Balcombe was typically middle England. They even sang their own version of 'Jerusalem' as they walked down to the protest site.
One villager joked that all that was missing was the cream and scones.
There are some voices raised against the semi-professional protesters on their doorstep. But the villagers who marched today say 85% of Balcombe's population of roughly 2,000 are against fracking - even though the drilling at the moment is conventional and exploratory.
Most of them say they are not "Nimbys" - they say there's no justification for fracking anywhere in the UK.
There have been no arrests on the site so far on Saturday, and the BBC's Andy Moore described the mood on site as "good natured".
Charles Metcalfe, a TV wine expert who lives in the village, has formed the No Fracking in Balcombe Society with his wife.
He said: "As far as I'm concerned, I'm a Sussex resident who thinks this is a poisonous process which will do us a lot of harm and not a lot of financial good."
A survey carried out by No Fibs claimed 85% of local people were opposed to Cuadrilla's operation in the village.
Katy Dunne, who lives in Balcombe and organised the survey, said: "We spoke to every household in the village and the overwhelming majority of people who live in Balcombe don't want fracking.
"We've done petitions, over 800 of us responded to the Environment Agency's consultation, the parish council has come out against and now we can say with confidence that the residents don't want it.
'Violation of geology'
"We've been backed into a corner and we now feel we have no option but to take matters into own own hands and protect our village."
Vanessa Vine, from Frack Free Sussex, said any future fracking would be "a violation of our geology that could threaten our water, fresh air and our children".
Protester at the test drilling site near Balcombe on Friday
On Thursday the site entrance was blocked by a fire engine
Friends of the Earth spokeswoman Brenda Pollack said: "It threatens their environment and quality of life and will mean more climate-changing emissions are pumped into the atmosphere.
"And there's plenty of evidence that it won't lead to cheaper fuel bills."
On Friday, two protesters were arrested on suspicion of assaulting police.
Sussex Police said an officer was punched and kicked by a woman who claimed she was 14, but turned out to be a 19-year-old from Portsmouth.
A 22-year-old man from Bexhill was also arrested after a police officer was hit in the face with a placard, officers said.
Six people were arrested on Thursday after protesters blocked the site entrance with an antique fire engine.
More than 30 people have been arrested since last Friday, mainly on suspicion of obstructing deliveries, including the daughter of Kinks star Ray Davies and Pretenders singer Chrissie Hynde, Natalie Hynde.
The 30-year-old glued herself to her boyfriend, veteran environmental activist Simon "Sitting Bull" Medhurst, 55, to form a "human lock" at the site entrance on Wednesday.
Cuadrilla said drilling started at 11:15 BST on Friday. Spokesman Matt Lambert said: "We have had a significant amount of disruption from protesters and the police have been dealing with that in the proper way.
"They have a perfect right to make their point of view known."
The firm has said it would need fresh permission to carry out fracking.
Villagers from Balcombe march to visit the protest site
Villagers from an area in West Sussex where protests have been taking place against oil exploration have walked to meet the campaigners.
The demonstration in Balcombe is now in its 10th day but energy firm Cuadrilla began drilling at the site on Friday after being held up by the protests.
Campaigners fear the test drilling could lead to hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking.
More than 100 Balcombe residents walked from the village to the protest site.
Helen Savage said: "Local villagers wanted to meet the protesters.
'Poisonous process'
"Overwhelmingly we are against fracking and it is important to get our views across.
"We want our land to remain frack-free."
It was billed not as a protest march but as a weekend stroll.
One of the villagers said that Balcombe was typically middle England. They even sang their own version of 'Jerusalem' as they walked down to the protest site.
One villager joked that all that was missing was the cream and scones.
There are some voices raised against the semi-professional protesters on their doorstep. But the villagers who marched today say 85% of Balcombe's population of roughly 2,000 are against fracking - even though the drilling at the moment is conventional and exploratory.
Most of them say they are not "Nimbys" - they say there's no justification for fracking anywhere in the UK.
There have been no arrests on the site so far on Saturday, and the BBC's Andy Moore described the mood on site as "good natured".
Charles Metcalfe, a TV wine expert who lives in the village, has formed the No Fracking in Balcombe Society with his wife.
He said: "As far as I'm concerned, I'm a Sussex resident who thinks this is a poisonous process which will do us a lot of harm and not a lot of financial good."
A survey carried out by No Fibs claimed 85% of local people were opposed to Cuadrilla's operation in the village.
Katy Dunne, who lives in Balcombe and organised the survey, said: "We spoke to every household in the village and the overwhelming majority of people who live in Balcombe don't want fracking.
"We've done petitions, over 800 of us responded to the Environment Agency's consultation, the parish council has come out against and now we can say with confidence that the residents don't want it.
'Violation of geology'
"We've been backed into a corner and we now feel we have no option but to take matters into own own hands and protect our village."
Vanessa Vine, from Frack Free Sussex, said any future fracking would be "a violation of our geology that could threaten our water, fresh air and our children".
Protester at the test drilling site near Balcombe on Friday
On Thursday the site entrance was blocked by a fire engine
Friends of the Earth spokeswoman Brenda Pollack said: "It threatens their environment and quality of life and will mean more climate-changing emissions are pumped into the atmosphere.
"And there's plenty of evidence that it won't lead to cheaper fuel bills."
On Friday, two protesters were arrested on suspicion of assaulting police.
Sussex Police said an officer was punched and kicked by a woman who claimed she was 14, but turned out to be a 19-year-old from Portsmouth.
A 22-year-old man from Bexhill was also arrested after a police officer was hit in the face with a placard, officers said.
Six people were arrested on Thursday after protesters blocked the site entrance with an antique fire engine.
More than 30 people have been arrested since last Friday, mainly on suspicion of obstructing deliveries, including the daughter of Kinks star Ray Davies and Pretenders singer Chrissie Hynde, Natalie Hynde.
The 30-year-old glued herself to her boyfriend, veteran environmental activist Simon "Sitting Bull" Medhurst, 55, to form a "human lock" at the site entrance on Wednesday.
Cuadrilla said drilling started at 11:15 BST on Friday. Spokesman Matt Lambert said: "We have had a significant amount of disruption from protesters and the police have been dealing with that in the proper way.
"They have a perfect right to make their point of view known."
The firm has said it would need fresh permission to carry out fracking.
Balcombe villagers protest
Source: BBC News 3rd August 2013
Villagers from Balcombe march to visit the protest site
Villagers from an area in West Sussex where protests have been taking place against oil exploration have walked to meet the campaigners.
The demonstration in Balcombe is now in its 10th day but energy firm Cuadrilla began drilling at the site on Friday after being held up by the protests.
Campaigners fear the test drilling could lead to hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking.
More than 100 Balcombe residents walked from the village to the protest site.
Helen Savage said: "Local villagers wanted to meet the protesters.
'Poisonous process'
"Overwhelmingly we are against fracking and it is important to get our views across.
"We want our land to remain frack-free."
It was billed not as a protest march but as a weekend stroll.
One of the villagers said that Balcombe was typically middle England. They even sang their own version of 'Jerusalem' as they walked down to the protest site.
One villager joked that all that was missing was the cream and scones.
There are some voices raised against the semi-professional protesters on their doorstep. But the villagers who marched today say 85% of Balcombe's population of roughly 2,000 are against fracking - even though the drilling at the moment is conventional and exploratory.
Most of them say they are not "Nimbys" - they say there's no justification for fracking anywhere in the UK.
There have been no arrests on the site so far on Saturday, and the BBC's Andy Moore described the mood on site as "good natured".
Charles Metcalfe, a TV wine expert who lives in the village, has formed the No Fracking in Balcombe Society with his wife.
He said: "As far as I'm concerned, I'm a Sussex resident who thinks this is a poisonous process which will do us a lot of harm and not a lot of financial good."
A survey carried out by No Fibs claimed 85% of local people were opposed to Cuadrilla's operation in the village.
Katy Dunne, who lives in Balcombe and organised the survey, said: "We spoke to every household in the village and the overwhelming majority of people who live in Balcombe don't want fracking.
"We've done petitions, over 800 of us responded to the Environment Agency's consultation, the parish council has come out against and now we can say with confidence that the residents don't want it.
'Violation of geology'
"We've been backed into a corner and we now feel we have no option but to take matters into own own hands and protect our village."
Vanessa Vine, from Frack Free Sussex, said any future fracking would be "a violation of our geology that could threaten our water, fresh air and our children".
Protester at the test drilling site near Balcombe on Friday
On Thursday the site entrance was blocked by a fire engine
Friends of the Earth spokeswoman Brenda Pollack said: "It threatens their environment and quality of life and will mean more climate-changing emissions are pumped into the atmosphere.
"And there's plenty of evidence that it won't lead to cheaper fuel bills."
On Friday, two protesters were arrested on suspicion of assaulting police.
Sussex Police said an officer was punched and kicked by a woman who claimed she was 14, but turned out to be a 19-year-old from Portsmouth.
A 22-year-old man from Bexhill was also arrested after a police officer was hit in the face with a placard, officers said.
Six people were arrested on Thursday after protesters blocked the site entrance with an antique fire engine.
More than 30 people have been arrested since last Friday, mainly on suspicion of obstructing deliveries, including the daughter of Kinks star Ray Davies and Pretenders singer Chrissie Hynde, Natalie Hynde.
The 30-year-old glued herself to her boyfriend, veteran environmental activist Simon "Sitting Bull" Medhurst, 55, to form a "human lock" at the site entrance on Wednesday.
Cuadrilla said drilling started at 11:15 BST on Friday. Spokesman Matt Lambert said: "We have had a significant amount of disruption from protesters and the police have been dealing with that in the proper way.
"They have a perfect right to make their point of view known."
The firm has said it would need fresh permission to carry out fracking.
Villagers from Balcombe march to visit the protest site
Villagers from an area in West Sussex where protests have been taking place against oil exploration have walked to meet the campaigners.
The demonstration in Balcombe is now in its 10th day but energy firm Cuadrilla began drilling at the site on Friday after being held up by the protests.
Campaigners fear the test drilling could lead to hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking.
More than 100 Balcombe residents walked from the village to the protest site.
Helen Savage said: "Local villagers wanted to meet the protesters.
'Poisonous process'
"Overwhelmingly we are against fracking and it is important to get our views across.
"We want our land to remain frack-free."
It was billed not as a protest march but as a weekend stroll.
One of the villagers said that Balcombe was typically middle England. They even sang their own version of 'Jerusalem' as they walked down to the protest site.
One villager joked that all that was missing was the cream and scones.
There are some voices raised against the semi-professional protesters on their doorstep. But the villagers who marched today say 85% of Balcombe's population of roughly 2,000 are against fracking - even though the drilling at the moment is conventional and exploratory.
Most of them say they are not "Nimbys" - they say there's no justification for fracking anywhere in the UK.
There have been no arrests on the site so far on Saturday, and the BBC's Andy Moore described the mood on site as "good natured".
Charles Metcalfe, a TV wine expert who lives in the village, has formed the No Fracking in Balcombe Society with his wife.
He said: "As far as I'm concerned, I'm a Sussex resident who thinks this is a poisonous process which will do us a lot of harm and not a lot of financial good."
A survey carried out by No Fibs claimed 85% of local people were opposed to Cuadrilla's operation in the village.
Katy Dunne, who lives in Balcombe and organised the survey, said: "We spoke to every household in the village and the overwhelming majority of people who live in Balcombe don't want fracking.
"We've done petitions, over 800 of us responded to the Environment Agency's consultation, the parish council has come out against and now we can say with confidence that the residents don't want it.
'Violation of geology'
"We've been backed into a corner and we now feel we have no option but to take matters into own own hands and protect our village."
Vanessa Vine, from Frack Free Sussex, said any future fracking would be "a violation of our geology that could threaten our water, fresh air and our children".
Protester at the test drilling site near Balcombe on Friday
On Thursday the site entrance was blocked by a fire engine
Friends of the Earth spokeswoman Brenda Pollack said: "It threatens their environment and quality of life and will mean more climate-changing emissions are pumped into the atmosphere.
"And there's plenty of evidence that it won't lead to cheaper fuel bills."
On Friday, two protesters were arrested on suspicion of assaulting police.
Sussex Police said an officer was punched and kicked by a woman who claimed she was 14, but turned out to be a 19-year-old from Portsmouth.
A 22-year-old man from Bexhill was also arrested after a police officer was hit in the face with a placard, officers said.
Six people were arrested on Thursday after protesters blocked the site entrance with an antique fire engine.
More than 30 people have been arrested since last Friday, mainly on suspicion of obstructing deliveries, including the daughter of Kinks star Ray Davies and Pretenders singer Chrissie Hynde, Natalie Hynde.
The 30-year-old glued herself to her boyfriend, veteran environmental activist Simon "Sitting Bull" Medhurst, 55, to form a "human lock" at the site entrance on Wednesday.
Cuadrilla said drilling started at 11:15 BST on Friday. Spokesman Matt Lambert said: "We have had a significant amount of disruption from protesters and the police have been dealing with that in the proper way.
"They have a perfect right to make their point of view known."
The firm has said it would need fresh permission to carry out fracking.
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Osborne's 'most generous' tax break for fracking firms
Source: Channel4 news 19th July 2013
In a move branded a "disgrace" by Friends of the Earth, Chancellor George Osborne unveils tax breaks for fracking in a bid to create the "most generous" regime for shale gas in the world.
A new shale gas allowance will more than halve the tax rate for onshore shale gas production, or fracking, from 62 per cent to 30 per cent.
Mr Osborne said: "We want to create the right conditions for industry to explore and unlock that potential in a way that allows communities to share in the benefits.
"This new tax regime, which I want to make the most generous for shale in the world, will contribute to that. I want Britain to be a leader of the shale gas revolution."
But opponents warn that the process for extracting shale gas, by hydraulic fracturing rock with high-pressure liquid to release the gas, or "fracking", can cause earthquakes, pollute water supplies, blight the countryside and affect house prices.
I want Britain to be a leader of the shale gas revolution
- George Osborne
The government also plans to give £100,000 per well to local communities affected by fracking and 1 per cent of revenues if the drilling proves to be commercially viable.
The backing from the Treasury comes after a recent report from the British Geological Survey revealed there was twice as much shale gas in the north of England as previously thought.
Other areas of the country could also be exploited for the gas. But it is still unclear how much of this shale gas could be extracted.
Ministers believe the experience of the US, which has seen a shale gas boom, shows it could boost tax revenues, create jobs, reduce energy imports - which have reached record highs in the UK - and bring down household fuel bills.
New planning guidance on shale gas is set to be published by the Communities Department as the government attempts to drive forward exploration.
'Economic miracle'?
Questions have been raised about how much of an impact the efforts to develop home-grown shale resources will have on household energy bills.
Environmental campaigners have also warned a new "dash for gas" will undermine efforts to develop clean energy, cut emissions and create green jobs and growth.
The chancellor has had to offer the industry sweetheart tax deals just to reassure them that fracking would be profitable
- Lawrence Carter, Greenpeace
Andrew Pendleton, Friends of the Earth's head of campaigns, said: "Promising tax hand-outs to polluting energy firms that threaten our communities and environment, when everyone else is being told to tighten their belts, is a disgrace.
"Ministers should be encouraging investors to develop the nation's huge renewable energy potential."
Greenpeace energy campaigner Lawrence Carter said: "The chancellor is telling anyone who will listen that UK shale gas is set to be an economic miracle, yet he's had to offer the industry sweetheart tax deals just to reassure them that fracking would be profitable."
In a move branded a "disgrace" by Friends of the Earth, Chancellor George Osborne unveils tax breaks for fracking in a bid to create the "most generous" regime for shale gas in the world.
A new shale gas allowance will more than halve the tax rate for onshore shale gas production, or fracking, from 62 per cent to 30 per cent.
Mr Osborne said: "We want to create the right conditions for industry to explore and unlock that potential in a way that allows communities to share in the benefits.
"This new tax regime, which I want to make the most generous for shale in the world, will contribute to that. I want Britain to be a leader of the shale gas revolution."
But opponents warn that the process for extracting shale gas, by hydraulic fracturing rock with high-pressure liquid to release the gas, or "fracking", can cause earthquakes, pollute water supplies, blight the countryside and affect house prices.
I want Britain to be a leader of the shale gas revolution
- George Osborne
The government also plans to give £100,000 per well to local communities affected by fracking and 1 per cent of revenues if the drilling proves to be commercially viable.
The backing from the Treasury comes after a recent report from the British Geological Survey revealed there was twice as much shale gas in the north of England as previously thought.
Other areas of the country could also be exploited for the gas. But it is still unclear how much of this shale gas could be extracted.
Ministers believe the experience of the US, which has seen a shale gas boom, shows it could boost tax revenues, create jobs, reduce energy imports - which have reached record highs in the UK - and bring down household fuel bills.
New planning guidance on shale gas is set to be published by the Communities Department as the government attempts to drive forward exploration.
'Economic miracle'?
Questions have been raised about how much of an impact the efforts to develop home-grown shale resources will have on household energy bills.
Environmental campaigners have also warned a new "dash for gas" will undermine efforts to develop clean energy, cut emissions and create green jobs and growth.
The chancellor has had to offer the industry sweetheart tax deals just to reassure them that fracking would be profitable
- Lawrence Carter, Greenpeace
Andrew Pendleton, Friends of the Earth's head of campaigns, said: "Promising tax hand-outs to polluting energy firms that threaten our communities and environment, when everyone else is being told to tighten their belts, is a disgrace.
"Ministers should be encouraging investors to develop the nation's huge renewable energy potential."
Greenpeace energy campaigner Lawrence Carter said: "The chancellor is telling anyone who will listen that UK shale gas is set to be an economic miracle, yet he's had to offer the industry sweetheart tax deals just to reassure them that fracking would be profitable."
