UK committee calls for ban on fracking
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.028592
BBC : The UK Parliament’s Environmental Audit Committee has called for a national moratorium on hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, for shale gas. According to the committee members, fracking will add to carbon emissions and keep the UK from meeting its carbon targets. In addition, it could have adverse environmental impacts on local water supplies, air quality, and public health. The UK Department of Energy and Climate Change disagrees, however, saying environmental risks can be minimized by proper procedures and monitoring, and shale gas would serve as a reliable backup to renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, which are intermittent. The debate is particularly pressing because of the UK’s participation in the upcoming international conference on climate change in Paris at the end of the year.