First UK fracking well approved since ban was lifted in 2012
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.029848
BBC : On Monday, the North Yorkshire County Council approved a bid by Third Energy to establish a shale-gas fracking facility. The decision followed two days of hearings, with input from local homeowners, farmers, and Third Energy employees. The council decided to follow a planning committee’s recommendation for approval despite just 36 favorable public comments out of the 4420 submitted. Fracking was banned throughout the UK in 2011 following tests that revealed the potential for earthquakes. Two other projects proposed since the reversal of the ban in 2012 have not received approval. The Third Energy project would use an existing 3000-meter-deep well that was drilled in 2013. The site would be fitted with seismic monitors that would automatically halt work in the event of a magnitude 0.5 quake.
