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UK allows controversial fracking

The U.K. has lifted a ban on the controversial method of natural gas extraction called “hydraulic fracturing,” which has angered environmental activists.

Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” involves pumping millions of gallons of chemically treated water deep underground to break up subterranean rock formations and release natural gas.

A story on CNN International points out that the method is controversial in the United States, where critics are worried about the potential for toxic chemicals in the fracking water – including the carcinogen benzene — to seep into the drinking water supply.

The process is taking place along the Marcellus Shale, which is a gas-rich underground rock formation that extends into Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio and West Virginia.

The CNN story says British regulators called a halt to fracking last year after two small earthquakes occurred in an area of northwestern England where natural gas drilling took place.

British Energy Secretary Edward Davey says the decision to allow fracking again was contingent on new procedures to limit the risks of seismic activity.

But environmental activist Lilly Morse is quoted as saying: “The government’s strategy of relying on fracking to fuel a new wave of gas-fired power stations is utterly insane. Fracking is dirty, destructive and extremely expensive, and could never deliver the quantities of gas envisaged.”

Lopez McHugh is investigating injuries related to natural gas extraction in the Marcellus Shale natural gas reserve. If you have significant injuries, contact a Lopez McHugh attorney for a free evaluation.

See the story here:

https://www.cnn.com/2012/12/13/business/uk-fracking/