19 events this week about fracking and onshore oil and gas, including Barton Moss police misconduct hearing, scheduled start of Upton camp eviction court case, industry conference, meet the regulator event, film screenings and planning and information meetings.
Please let us know (click here) if any of these details are incorrect or if other events should be included. Event listings for the rest of October and later in the year here
Monday 17 October 2016
Scheduled start of gross misconduct hearing for Inspector David Kehoe in connection with the arrest of Dr Steven Peers at the Barton Moss protest in January 2014. Greater Manchester Police headquarters at Central Park, off Oldham Road, Manchester M40 5BP. Expected to last five days.People who wish to attend must have had made requests in advance. Details
Confirmed date for screening of How to let go of the world and love all the things climate can’t change, a new film by Josh Fox. 6pm, Odeon Edinburgh Wester Hailes, 120 Wester Hailes , Edinburgh , EH14 3HR.Details and to reserve tickets
Reclaim the Power Keeping it in the Ground mobilisation tour with local groups to oppose fracking and coal industries to extract fossil fuels, 7pm Regather Social Centre, 57-59 Club Garden Road, Sheffield S11 8BU. Details
Bring Fracking Home to Barclays planning meeting, 7pm-8,30pm, Friends of the Earth offices, 139 Clapham Road, London SW9 0HP Details
Confirmed date for screening of How to let go of the world and love all the things climate can’t change, a new film by Josh Fox. 8.30pm, ODEON Glasgow Springfield Quay, Springfield Quay, Glasgow, G5 8NP. Details and to reserve tickets
Tuesday 18 October 2016
Day 1 of Oil & Money 2016 conference addressing current and emerging issues confronting the global oil and gas industry. Intercontinental London Park Lane, One Hamilton Place, Park Lane, London W1J 7QY. Details
Meet the Regulators drop-in session, with representatives of Environment Agency, Health and Safety Executive, Oil and Gas Authority, and Public Health England. 2pm-7pm, Scarborough Bowls Centre, Peasholm Rd, Scarborough YO12 7TT
Frack Free Yeovil planning meeting, 7pm, Meadow Road, Yeovil. Details and contact details for venue.
Are We Going To Be Fracked? Presentation by Frack Free South Yorkshire to public meeting. 7.30pm-9.30pm, Mosborough Miners Welfare,Station Road, Mossborough S20 5AD. Details
Wednesday 19 October 2016
Scheduled start date of a trial of nine people arrested during the eviction of Upton Protection Camp, Duttons Lane, Chester. The case is expected to last three-four days. 10am, Chester Magistrates Court, Grosvenor Street, Chester, Cheshire CH1 2XA.
Gathering outside Chester Magistrates Court in support of people on trial following eviction of Upton Community Protection Camp. 9am-5pm, Chester Magistrates Court, Grosvenor Street, Chester, Cheshire CH1 2XA. Details
Day 2 of Oil & Money 2016 conference addressing current and emerging issues confronting the global oil and gas industry. Intercontinental London Park Lane, One Hamilton Place, Park Lane, London W1J 7QY. Details
Environment Secretary, Andrea Leadsom, appears before the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee, 2pm, Grimond Room, Portcullis House, Westminster SW1. The hearing will be broadcast on www.parliamentlive.tv
Reclaim the Power Keeping it in the Ground mobilisation tour with local groups to oppose fracking and coal industries to extract fossil fuels, 7pm St Saviour’s Parish Presbytery, Tarporley Road, Ellesmere Port CH66 3JY. Details
Pendle Borough Council expected to debate a motion by Cllr Yasser Iqbal: ”This council notes with disappointment the decision by the Communities Secretary to ignore local democracy and grant a fracking licence in Lancashire. The council also notes the decision of the Conservative government to allow companies to apply for fracking in parts of Pendle namely Brierfield. We wish the council to write to the Prime Minister and the communities secretary to not proceed any further with plans to grant licences which allow fracking in Pendle.” 7pm, Council Chamber, Nelson Town Hall, Market Square, Nelson BB9 7LG. Details
Screening of Gasland 2, Sheffield University students’ anti-fracking week. Details
Thursday 20 October 2016
Global crisis, local action meeting by Oxford Friends of the Earth, including Craig Bennett (chief executive of Friends of the Earth) and Jonathan Porritt (former FoE chief executive), chaired by Chaired by Elizabeth Wilson, Reader in Environmental Planning, Oxford Brookes University. 6.15 pm – 8.30 pm, Wesley Hall, New Inn Hall St, Oxford OX1 2DH. Details and tickets
Reclaim the Power Keeping it in the Ground mobilisation tour with local groups to oppose fracking and coal industries to extract fossil fuels, 7pm Borough Brewery, Brook Street, Lancaster LA1 1SL Details
Kirklees Campaign Against Climate Change screening of Groundwell Rising and Condemned followed by informal group discussion, 7pm, The Red and Green Club, 42 Bankwell Road, Milnsbridge, Huddersfield HD3 4LU. Details
Saturday 22 October 2016
AxeDrax demonstration and celebration, 1pm-5pm, Drak Power Station, near the South Gate, Drax, Selby, YO8 8PH. Details
Please let us know (click here) if any of these details are incorrect or if other events should be included. Event listings for the rest of October and later in the year here
Categories: Diary
DRILL OR DROP? 
[Edited by moderator] All a waste of time as fracking is going to happen.
I wonder if we should be considering the National Grid winter outlook which basically says we’ll need the services of expensive, very CO2 intensive coal and possibly diesel generators to operate the Supplementary Balancing Reserve this winter if we get a cold spell.
The outlook document made assumptions about the inward flow of power from France and the Netherlands but given the concerns about Nuclear safety in France it’s possible the flow will be zero or even negative (the interconnector is two way). Wow, if the European electricity market determines that we export electricity causing greater use of coal here then the muck will hit the fan from both the green lobby and the Brexiteers. If you look at the graphs provided by the NG (fig 5 of the document) it looks like a cold spell may bring in the SBR during early December or part of January. It all depends on the weather.
Robin Pagnamenta, the Times’ energy correspondant, has an interesting article on the subject this week.
Sorry, why are we axeing Drax? It’s the biggest single provider of renewable energy in the UK via it’s use of wood pellet fuel from sustainable forests in the USA and elsewhere. They have plans to replace all their coal units with wood burning ones as soon as they can negotiate the necessary funding. If I remember rightly Drax on it’s own provides about 7% of our electricity needs of which two-thirds comes from co2 neutral sources.