UK government pushes for shale-gas production
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.028415
New York Times : In an effort to promote fracking to its citizens, the UK government led by Prime Minister David Cameron announced it would use the proceeds earned from shale-gas extraction to establish a sovereign wealth fund . Although fracking has been successfully used in the US and has resulted in lower domestic gas and global oil prices, it has met with strong resistance in Europe because of fears that it will pollute local water supplies and cause increased traffic and noise. The UK has numerous coal-fired and nuclear power plants, but they are getting old, and the country is growing increasingly dependent on imported fuel. More wells will need to be drilled to determine whether the UK has enough shale gas to make such an enterprise worthwhile.
