Blackpool Gazette: Lord sparks anger with frack stance

A LEADING energy chief has given his backing to fracking.

Environment Agency chairman Lord Chris Smith has given a “big yes” to controversial shale gas drilling, but said there is a big “if” attached.

He wants it done safely and said it will be “rigorously monitored” by the agency if Cuadrilla Resources, which wants to drill across the Fylde coast, is given the go-ahead to resume.

Local campaigners believe safety can never be guaranteed.

Lord Smith said he would not stand in the way of fracking in the UK, as long as certain requirements were met, arguing “it could be part of the answer” to the UK’s energy demands.

“The source of a domestically available gas supply would, of course, be potentially very beneficial for our energy needs. It could provide energy security, which we don’t necessarily have when we import gas from abroad. It could be affordable,” he said.  MORE