Expert raises new fears over effects of fracking

Expert raises new fears over effects of fracking by Bath Chronicle, December 27, 2012
Dr David Packham, senior lecturer in materials science at the Claverton Down university, has spoken out about the impact that fracking could have if it was given the go ahead in Bath and north east Somerset or on the Mendips. He said very little was known about what exactly would happen to Bath’s hot springs and he was concerned about the wider impact on the environment generally. The Government has put its full support behind fracking, while at the same time trying to reassure communities that the necessary regulations will be in place to protect the environment. … These concerns have been echoed by Alex Hart, from Frack Free Somerset, who said the public was being sold a myth about the potential benefits of fracking. She said Prime Minister David Cameron should think again: “It is utterly depressing that the country’s leader is demonstrating such a lack of imagination and proving how short-sighted he is. “Cameron and other fans of ‘natural gas’ are using a lower prices myth to sell a toxic product. Prices will only ever go up as wells produce rapidly falling amounts of gas. “Shale gas and coal-bed methane supporters are also ignoring one (among many) glaringly obvious fact; all wells leak eventually. “So, regardless of whatever regulatory mechanisms, licenses or permits that the government put in place, prevention of pollution can never be guaranteed.”