Fracking in Staffordshire.

On Tuesday (12^th Jan. 2016) evening the topic of the regular talk hosted by the Leek local group of the Staffordshire Wildlife Trust was about fracking. The talk was given by Dr Ian Stimpson, a geologist at Keele University. The talk was very informative and Dr. Stimpson assured us that there will be no fracking under Staffordshire, as the shales (or mudstones) that underlie this part of the UK are of insufficient depth to contain usable gas – however research is being done into the possibility of utilizing methane that is present in former coal mining areas.

For those who couldn't attend the meeting and are interested I have made the following notes based on what I can remember from his talk and information in a report produced for a number of wildlife NGOs. There is a link to the report below. Of course, there are also lots of other sources of information on the internet. If anyone thinks I've missed something please let me know.

http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/sites/default/files/shale_gas_summary_-_amended_20_3_14.pdf

Process/Issue	Benefits	Disadvantages	Context
Shale gas as source of energy	1.Energy security (present source of oil and gas for UK - North Sea nearly exhausted). 2. Helps the UK compete for markets of manufactured goods with other countries that have the benefit of lower energy prices. 3. Jobs 4. Economy	1.One alternative would be nuclear which also has its opponents. 2. Another alternative is to import gas but may be costly and some suppliers (e.g. Putin's Russia) may not be acceptable.	Uk has only 3 days of energy supply to tide it over, therefore in order to maintain our current lifestyle we need to secure future supplies.
Reliablity	Available regardless of prevailing weather conditions – useful to offer back-up to renewables		(Currently) electricity generated by wind, solar etc. is only available during appropriate weather
Cost	Potentially considerably cheaper than renewables	Prices not certain at this stage as geology and regulatory environment in UK different from USA	Global price of gas anticipated to rise as supplies dwindle, hence fracked gas could help ameliorate this
Land coverage	Solar and wind farms use large areas of land surface and may reduce land available for agricultural purposes. Shale gas exploitation may use far less land/ kWh.	1.Many well heads may be needed and it is likely that small power stations will be constructed near these 2. There will need to be roads and other infrastructure associated with well heads.	Whatever form of energy we use involves impacts on the landscape. *Perhaps offshore wave power has the least impact (but this is very expensive at present and has its own ecological consequences) *my own thoughts.
Climate Change	Potentially lower CO2 emissions than coal.	1. Methane escape from worked mudstones may negate any benefits from CO2 reduction (when compared with coal). 2. Fracked gas may reduce the imperative to invest in research into innovation in renewables.	Shale gas would provide an interim source of energy whilst renewable technology is improved to provide all weather energy supply (storage in batteries, extra capacity etc.)
“earthquakes”	Earth tremors are minor, deep down and actually only detected by seismographs	1. Earth tremors in USA due to disposal of waste water back into fracked mudstones; those in Lancashire due to early errors in practice; UK legislation more rigorous than UK and should prevent any detectable (by people) tremors 2. There are concerns that reduced numbers of Environment Agency staff may lead to companies avoiding inspection	1. Many areas of UK experience earth movements, some are due to natural causes, most are due to mining subsidence.
Water pollution		1.Mining wastewater can be contaminated by substances added by mining companies to facilitate fracking plus others from the mudstones themselves – sometimes radioactive material is involved, this is then released in to rivers etc. and ultimately ends up in the sea.	1.UK environmental regulations stronger than those in USA 2. Pollutants may be no worse than other substances we put into water (from industry and domestic) (however this does not mean we should add to existing pollution)
Drinking water aquifers. Dr Stimpson explained that the drill bore hole has to pass through aquifers, which are beds of rock that are natural water storage areas, frequently used for piped water supplies. These are located above the gas-rich mudstones so accessing the gas beds involves passing through these areas and so it is essential that the drill is leak proof. Therefore the top 100s metres of the drill is cased in multiple layers of (metal) piping and concrete sheaths.		There is a risk of pollution due to accidental leaks of shale gas or fracking waters into potable water.	All this is subject to UK environmental regulations.
Water use		1.Uses vast amounts of water which may have to be transported to well heads by tanker lorry. 2. Fracking will compete with other users of water – supplies of water in some parts of UK (e.g.SE England) already under strain due to growing population and diminishing supply (possibly due to climate change)	UK environmental regulations stronger than those in USA.
Sand quarrying			Sand is required as part of the fracking process, would this involve more quarrying?
Aesthetic	Some people dislike wind turbines and solar arrays, well heads may be more acceptable.	Some people may prefer wind turbines and solar arrays to well heads and associated infrastructure.	All forms of electricity generation, gas extraction etc. and its transmission have an impact on the landscape.
Noise Pollution	May be quieter than other forms of power generation?	May disturb wildlife and annoy nearby humans.	Variable levels also associated with other forms of power generation.
Light pollution		May disturb wildlife and nearby humans.	Also associated with other forms of power generation though perhaps less so with wind and solar power.
Traffic		People living near well heads will be subject to increased traffic which may include water tankers.	Increased traffic is also a result of other forms of power generation.