Reuters: Battle of Balcombe's shale to test British policymakers: Kemp
The village of Balcombe in West Sussex, with fewer than 2,000 residents, is set to test whether Britain's politicians, media and public can strike a sensible balance between climate change and energy security, local concerns and national priorities.
Balcombe has become a rallying point for a broad alliance of environmentalists and community groups opposed to the introduction of hydraulic fracturing for shale gas in Britain, as Guy Chazan explains in a thoughtful article in Monday's Financial Times ("Sussex village of Balcombe is focal point of fracking opposition" April 29).
Britain's pioneering fracking firm, Cuadrilla Resources, has planning permission from West Sussex County Council, the local authority, for exploratory drilling in the area, though it has no plans to do so at present, according to the firm's website. Cuadrilla appears to be focusing on exploration and development in other parts of the country. The battle of Balcombe is therefore something of a phony war.