Northern Ireland’s environment minister Mark Durkan has banned shale fracking in the strategic planning policy statement (SPPS) for Northern Ireland. Durkan stated that this would not change unless the Department of the Environment is “satisfied that there is sufficient and robust evidence on all environmental impacts of fracking.” He said: “I have been consistently clear […]
Tories to allow fracking in nature reserves
The government pledged to restrict fracking in national parks, yet in July it reneged on it’s pre-election promise to protect the thousands of wildlife sites in the UK. Nearly 300 sites of special scientific interest (SSSI), home to rare animals and plants, have now been opened up to fracking by the Tory government. This is a far […]