It’s Monday, November 4, and Britain’s only fracking operation has to close up shop.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government announced a moratorium on the U.K.’s only active fracking project over the weekend, a move that environmentalists and local communities are celebrating even as they continue to call for a permanent ban.
Before Johnson’s move, a report by the U.K.’s Oil and Gas Authority led the government to decide a shale gas drilling operation near the coastal town of Blackpool couldn’t be completed without “unacceptable” consequences (namely, pollution and earthquakes) for people living nearby. The moratorium took effect immediately and will continue “unless and until compelling new evidence” shows that nearby communities will be safe during the process, according to the government’s statement.
Given Johnson’s previous enthusiasm for fracking, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and other members of opposition parties have called the moratorium a “stunt” to undercut their ability to campaign against fracking in the upcoming general election. Green Party leader Jonathan Bartley nonetheless described the move as “very, very welcome” even as he advocated for fracking to be banned outright.
The Smog
Need-to-know basis
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