An assessment of current regulation and suggestions for a citizen-centred approach to the governing of UK hydraulic fracturing

Abstract

For reasons of economics and security of supply, the UK government began promotion of the development of unconventional natural gas resources, in hopes of emulating the USA’s “shale gas revolution” ( US EIA, 2014 ; UK DECC, 2015 ). The UK is in the preliminary stages of licenced drilling, exploration and testing for development of its shale gas resources ( Standing, 2016 ; Bradshaw, 2017 ). The British Geological Survey estimated the volume of shale gas in 11 counties in Northern England at 40 trillion cubic metres ( BGS, DECC, 2013 ). After legal challenges by communities where resource development was proposed (Preston New Road Action Group (acting through Susan Holliday) and PNR v The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and Others), the UK began exploratory drilling at the Preston New Road (PNR) site in 2017 ( Bickle et al., 2012 ). This is signifi cant as development of this technology – new in the UK – is coming on the heels of the recent populist vote to leave the European Union (EU). Currently, the UK’s environmental laws are based on EU Directives. Additionally, the European Commission provides a non-binding Recommendation on minimum principles for the exploration and production of hydrocarbons, including shale gas, using high-volume hydraulic fracturing (European Union, European Commission recommendation, 2014). This Recommendation offers best-practice guidance, and indicates the future regulatory direction of the Commission. Preambular paragraph 1 states that: “(1) Member States have the right to determine the conditions for exploiting their energy resources, as long as they respect the need to preserve, protect and improve the quality of the environment,” with paragraph 2 acknowledging that the “[. . .] hydraulic fracturing technique raises specifi c challenges, in particular for health and environment.” These paragraphs point to the need for the UK to consider health and environmental effects, but leave a degree of discretion as to how and to what extent hydraulic fracturing should be regulated. The UK government is resisting the development of specifi c legislation largely on two grounds: fi rst, they are confi dent that the current regulatory regime is “more than robust enough” and second, they hope to promote technological development and industrial growth (Stokes, 2016). 11 An assessment of current regulation and suggestions for a citizen-centred approach to the governing of UK hydraulic fracturing