Fears of shale gas pollution in the UK

Fears of shale gas pollution have been dismissed as 'extremely unlikely' in the UK, after local citizens expressed concern over two earthquakes that had been set off by fracking exploration, it has been reported by the Press Association.

Fracking involves drilling deep in the earth (up to 20,000 ft) and high-pressure pumping a mix of water, proppants (such as sand) and chemicals (including highly carcinogenic benzene and formaldehyde) into the bore hole to ease the flow of gas for extraction.

It has already been the source of controversy in the US, where footage has been captured of people being able to set fire to the water coming out of their taps as a result of gas contamination.

Campaigners believe the two earthquakes set off in Lancashire in the north of England could have caused damage to local water supplies, and have called for a moratorium on fracking. They fear drinking water could be polluted by methane gas or chemicals in the liquid used in the process.

However, Professor Mike Stephenson, of the British Geological Survey, has pointed to peer-review literature of pollution of water by methane as a result of freckling, which suggests the process is safe.

He added that the presence of the gas in US water supplies was likely to be natural.

Posted by Lauren Steadman