Previous Blog comments indicate this is an issue of interest to our readers. Last Thursday the Government reversed their previous assurances and gave the go ahead in principal for the extraction of shale gas by ‘fracking’ (the injection of water and chemicals into shale beds to release the gas) within National Parks. It is not known if any companies will be interested in exploring for shale gas in the Peak District or in our immediate area, though there are shale beds under much of the local parishes.
There is now a Parliamentary petition asking the government to reverse this decision. Click on the image below to access this petition:
PARWICH.ORG 
I personally feel that we should all be extremely concerned about fracking, and not just in the National Parks. I have signed the petition but would have liked to sign it also on behalf of other areas that are potentially under threat of fracking but fall outside the Parks. A similar form of gas extraction has taken place in the NE of the province of Groningen, in the Netherlands, over the past 30+ years, where they have experienced ‘minor’ earthquakes of increasing strength (up to 3.6 on the Richter scale), sagging, subsidence etc., resulting in damage to a large number of buildings, including historical buildings such as churches and old farmhouses. Here is just a flavour of what has happened, slowly and initially barely noticed, over many years:
http://www.dwarshuis.com/earthquakes-groningen-gas-field/history-groningen-gas/#
Yes, the geology will be different and no, my knowledge of fracking is very scant, but even if a fraction (sorry about the pun) of the consequences that the residents of Groningen have endured and are still enduring, will materialise here as a result of fracking, then it is cause for great concern. Just google ‘fracking and Groningen’ and you’ll find several articles (in English) on the subject.
And this is not the only aspect of fracking that really concerns me.
How worried are you?
There is a further Parliamentary petition asking the government to leave the decision on fracking planning applications with local planning authorities:
“Local Councils to have final say on Fracking within their constituency.
Lancashire County Council overwhelmingly voted against fracking in Lancashire. The Conservative Government is now over ruling local democracies and allowing one man, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, to decide on this. Local Councils should decide, not one man.”
See https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/113959
And now a specific parliamentary petition “to prevent all hydraulic fracturing from taking place within the Peak District”.
See https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/117267