Charts measuring the 5 July 2018 earthquake at Newdigate in Surrey. Source: British Geological Survey
A group of senior geologists has called for an immediate moratorium on oil and gas exploration in the area of Surrey affected by 12 earthquakes in the past four months.
In a letter in this morning’s Times newspaper, senior lecturer Stuart Gilfillan and professor Stuart Haszeldine, both of University of Edinburgh, and emeritus professors Bill McGuire and Richard Selley, said:
“The abrupt onset of the earthquake cluster recorded by the British Geological Survey at Newdigate since 1 April 2018 requires an explanation, and gives rise to our concerns about safety.
“We believe that public health and the environment are not being adequately protected given the unstable geology, which has not been identified before permits were issued for the currently active drill sites.”
They have written to the Business Secretary, Greg Clark, and regulators of the oil and gas industry urging them to address the issue urgently.
The geologists said:
“Oil drilling and extraction, and re-injection in particular, can cause earthquakes.”
There are two active hydrocarbon sites in the area where the earthquake cluster was felt: Horse Hill, operated by Horse Hill Developments Ltd, near Gatwick Airport; and the Angus Energy site at Brockham near Dorking.
Both companies have said there is no connection between their operations and the earthquakes (DrillOrDrop reports here and here).
Tests to assess the flow of oil at the Horse Hill site began after the start of the earthquake cluster.
This morning, UK Oil & Gas plc, the major investor at Horse Hill, said it was “very disappointed” that the four academics had issued the letter “prematurely”. UKOG said it hoped their motives were “purely scientific” but added “it appears otherwise as they have not been involved in the scientific investigation of the Newdigate tremors”.
The company added:
“The Horse Hill operator, Horse Hill Developments Ltd, was pumping at the Horse Hill site during only one of these 12 events. Pumping only started on 9 July 2018, following the first 8 tremors. Also, the Horse Hill oil well was shut-in all day on 18 July 2018.” Full statement by UK Oil & Gas plc on letter to The Times
At Brockham, Angus Energy’s managing director, Paul Vonk, said in an online interview last month:
“It is scientifically and physically impossible for us to have caused these tremors.” Link to Angus Energy comment on Surrey earthquakes
But the academics said today:
“A causal link with either well site cannot be ruled out, so we need the full picture for the risk assessment.
“The moratorium on drilling, re-injection and flow testing should be put in place immediately and remain in force until the records of fluid injection, and local faulting activity have been comprehensively surveyed and interpreted, and the triggering mechanism for this quake cluster phenomenon properly understood.”
In a statement issued this lunchtime by the campaign network, Weald Action Group, Professor Selley said:
“The location of the swarm close to two active fields suggests more than serendipity and merits investigation.”
Dr Gilfillan said:
“We know from existing borehole records that the drilling target is between 500 to 1000 metres below ground surface, and that is within the range of the latest depth estimates at which these earthquakes are believed to be occurring.”
Professor Haszeldine said:
“These earthquakes are unique and unprecedented events in the region, and seem to be increasing.
“I think the injection of acid and injection of waste waters may have caused uncontrolled consequences, which were not expected. This activity needs to be paused immediately, to understand what these companies are doing underground, and prevent any chance of leakage or earth tremors affecting people at the surface.”
New monitors
Tweet by the British Geological Survey on 2 August 2018 on new monitoring equipment
Last week, the British Geological Survey installed three extra sets of equipment to measure any future seismic activity in around Newdigate. This brings the number of monitors in the area to five.
The most powerful earthquakes in the recent cluster had a magnitude of 3 and most were said to be at a depth of about 1km. They were felt in places including Dorking, Newdigate, Horley and Charlwood in Surrey and in Crawley, West Sussex. Before April 2018, there had been no recorded earthquakes in Surrey for 50 years.
The Green MEP for the area, Keith Taylor, said:
“I welcome the British Geological Survey’s efforts to further monitor this activity and wholeheartedly support the call from geology and seismology experts for a moratorium on any oil and gas activity in the geological region until the results of any investigation are clear. The case for employing the precautionary principle is obvious.”
Increase in water injection
Extract from the latest OGA data on water injection at Angus Energy sites at Brockham and Lidsey in southern England
Also last week, the Oil & Gas Authority (OGA) released the latest data on the volume of injected water at the Brockham oil site. This showed an increase from 3m3 in March 2018 to 73m3 in April 2018. According to the OGA data, this followed several years of no water injection at the site. Link to OGA data page and data for Brockham
A local residents’ group, Brockham Oil Watch, told DrillOrDrop:
“The figure of 73 m3 reinjected at Brockham in April after an apparent long period of no or very low activity coincides with the onset of earthquakes in Surrey. This is concerning and any relationship between the two needs to be investigated further given that wastewater reinjection has been proven to be the main cause of earthquakes in the Central U.S., and that several experts we have been in touch with, including professors: Richard Selley, Peter Styles and David Smythe, indicated that it could be linked to the recent seismic activity.”
The OGA data is provided by the site operators. On 11 July 2018, DrillOrDrop asked the regulator what steps it took to verify data from operators. We are still waiting for a reply.
Brockham Oil Watch said:
“This is yet another example of a “gold standard” regulatory regime allowing operators to self-monitor and mark their own homework. There is no central database, the regulators hold data in disconnected systems that don’t allow for easy cross-referencing.”
DrillOrDrop also asked Angus Energy to comment on any relationship between injected water and earthquakes. The company has not replied.
The Brockham site is operating under an old-style environmental permit. DrillOrDrop reported this represented a regulatory loophole because the operator was not required by the Environment Agency (EA) to collect or maintain details on well stimulation or fluid reinjection.
Brockham Oil Watch said:
“A decade worth of reinjection data for Brockham held by the OGA is unreliable, whilst the HSE and the EA do not have any data at all, except for what Angus reported to the EA for period of Jan 2015-Jan 2016 in their re-permitting application documents.
“Even if the reported monthly totals were correct, much more detailed data is needed for analysis, including times and dates of reinjection, volumes per episode, applied pressures, exact destinations, etc.”
On Wednesday (8 August 2018), Surrey County Council is due to decide a part-retrospective planning application for the Brockham site. This includes a sidetrack well, drilled in January 2017 which the company said was covered by planning permission but the council said was not. DrillOrDrop background report. DrillOrDrop will be reporting on the meeting
Categories: Research
DRILL OR DROP? 
Paula-“we haven’t seen”! No, if you don’t look. A calendar would be a good starting point.
I think at Blackpool there was a causal link shown. That is not the case in Surrey.
If it looks contrived and desperate, then it probably is. It is a little different to wild birds or bats or fracking when there is none etc. etc. but it still seems to excite a few.
Cuadrilla denied for months that the Preese Hall earthquakes were connected with their operations there before finally admitting to it. . It was later discovered that the integrity of the well had been compromised.The Gold Standard Regulations that we are now told prevail should recognise that there could at least be some connection with this drilling in Surrey and have the decency to call a halt until it has been thoroughly investigated. What are they afraid of?
Some objectivity and facts required. Here’s a few for starters…
https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/1dc2d949-eeda-4084-ba74-084b00b3560f
So casual that after 6 months Cuadrilla admitted it ? Maybe check the qualifications of Prof Selley
http://www.imperial.ac.uk/people/r.selley
Hmmm injecting acid ( is that right?) into an area full of limestone. What could possibly go wrong 🙂
Britain is actually hit by hundreds of small earthquakes every year, with the largest on record measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale in the North Sea near the Dogger Bank in 1931, with a magnitude of 6.1 causing damage to buildings up to 200 miles away!
It does seem that whatever or whoever caused these tremors, if they continue, there is a high risk to the integrity of the oil wells close to the tremors. That may mean just that Horse Hill have difficulty casing their expected second well, but we’ll just have to wait and see what the rock huggers at the BGS come up with.
Odd that the seismic activity seems to be associated with two parallel faults rather than along a single fault.
Hmm, Amanda! And when you were travelling through France on a train, where do you think a big part of the electricity to run that train was coming from? (You are not Jack’s sister are you? I recall he made almost exactly the same statement last summer.) Not the sources you mention. I wonder why that disconnection?
When you have to change the reality to fit your argument, it shows up as a dream.
Meanwhile, Gatwick and Heathrow due to be expanded because the public fly to France, and elsewhere, in increasing numbers. That aviation fuel made from the oil that is shipped into Fawley-or, it could come from the Weald to add to Wytch Farm and a few others.
I took the train from Dorking to Brittany. A London to Paris return trip by train produces about 0.01 tonnes of CO2 per passenger, whereas a return flight (Heathrow to Paris) produces ten times this amount. Sure electric trains are not fossil free but France is forging ahead with renewables and even seems to be moving away from nuclear.
I’ve no idea who Jack is. What reality am I changing? You’ve lost me on these two points.
Why do people think that they have an absolute right to travel on a plane anywhere in the world absolutely anytime they want? In the last twenty years I’ve taken five holidays abroad including the one mentioned above. Yes holidays abroad are lovely, but they should be a rare treat, there are people that fly to a holiday destination more times a year than I have in the past 20. We need to reduce flights not increase them. Tough luck if you can’t go abroad every single year several times a year, stay put and explore your own country and put money into the local economy. We don’t have a right to fly around the world anymore than we have a right to fly to the moon and beyond once a year! As for business needs, we have phones, skype conference calls, email etc the digital age should be able to massively reduce the necessity for business flights. We are moving towards green energy but not fast enough. If everyone switched their gas and electric to 100% renewable tariffs just think of the massive investment that would happen! If everyone divested to green banks, pensions and investments just think what could be achieved in a very short space of time! And time is something we don’t have on our side right now, I’m scared for my two children’s future and although neither of them want children right now at this moment in time I would advise them not too. And that’s another big area that needs to see change, a massive slowing down in the growth of the population worldwide. So much to be done if we don’t want to all go to hell in an already burning handcart in the very near future.
Clarification – when I say ‘tough luck if you can’t fly abroad’ I don’t specifically mean you I mean anyone of us, everyone.
Is the local oil company Angus Energy responsible for tremors near Gatwick?
Their expert says not as the epicentres were approximately 10km away from the Brockham Oil Field near water wells and other potential sources
SHARE
ByMatthew DevonportCommercial Editor
15:43, 6 AUG 2018UPDATED16:11, 6 AUG 2018
The Brockham Oil field has been producing natural crude for more than 30 years
Get Daily updates directly to your inbox
Enter your email
+ Subscribe
See our privacy notice
When a series of small scale seismic events were felt around the Surrey and Sussex area recently environmental activists pointed the finger at several oil companies.
The Brockham Oil Field, operated by Angus Energy, conventionally extracts oil from the Brockham Field in the Weald Basin near Dorking. Fears were raised that somehow fracking from the field created the tremors.
The company’s chief geologist Andrew Hollis has more than 40 years experience in the oil industry. He says not only is there no data to support that conclusion – it is scientifically impossible.
Here he explains there is no fracking at Brockham and the work Angus Energy is actually doing at Brockham Field. He dispels many of the misconceptions and myths associated with it.
When were the earthquakes?
Since April 1 this year a series of small-scale seismic events were detected by the British Geological Survey all around the Surrey and Sussex area. These were:
April 1: Magnitudes 2.7, 1.8 & 1.7
April 4: Magnitude 1.5
June 27: Magnitude 2.6
June 29: Magnitude 2.4
July 5: Magnitude 3.0
July 10: Magnitude 1.9
July 18: Magnitudes 0.4, 1.9, & 2.4
At the moment there is no heavy machinery on the Brockham Oil Field
How severe are they?
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Magnitude and Intensity measure different characteristics of earthquakes. Magnitude measures the energy released at the source of the earthquake. Intensity measures the strength of shaking produced by the earthquake at a certain location.
According to the USGS, these tremors have the lowest intensity possible on the Mercalli Scale. The USGS describes all of these earthquakes as ‘Not felt except by a very few under especially favourable conditions.’
READ MORE
Eight ways families in Redhill can save water and cut their energy bills
What are Angus Energy doing at Brockham?
The Brockham Oil Field is less than one percent of a 500 acre private farm, it has been producing natural crude for more than 30 years after first being drilled by BP in 1987. All operations are performed through conventional production – there is no hydraulic fracturing or fracking.
Angus Energy has not performed any subsurface work or major operations for at least 18 months. At the moment there is only one active well.
Oil and water (the produced oil is a mixture of oil and water) is pumped to the surface through a six-inch pipe. The normal operating process since 2007 is to replace water back into the Portland Sandstone reservoir. The water is a natural part of the reservoir.
The reservoir pressure at ~600m depth is at approximately 1/3 of the pressure required to fracture any rock. The company does nothing to increase or moderate it.
Lastly, the limestone rocks already have natural fractures, therefore not only is fracking not required, it wouldn’t help anyway. They simply don’t do it under any circumstances.
A map showing the location of the tremors in the square in relation to the position of the Brockham Oil Field. The earth’s natural geological fault lines run east to west not north to south.
How do they extract oil?
Angus Energy’s every day operating process is that after the oil rises, water is separated from a natural oil/water mixture and the water is placed back where it came from.
Water is not injected to stimulate or create any extraction nor is it replaced at levels greater than what has been removed. Therefore the pressure of the reservoir never increases. In fact, it decreases.
Fracking is where an artificial high pressure water mixture is directed at shale rock to release gas or oil inside. The shale rock at the Brockham Oil field is already naturally fractured. Mother nature has already accomplished the task.
So were the earthquakes near the wells?
The epicentres were approximately 10km away from the Brockham Oil Field. They were near water wells and other potential sources not related to oil and gas that are not very deep and reflect the actual data.
The earth’s natural geological fault lines in the deep subsurface at Brockham run east – west. However, the epicentres of these earthquakes were to the south of the site. Therefore it is physically impossible for the Brockham field to create an earthquake.
Angus Energy’s chief geologist Andrew Hollis has more than 40 years experience in the oil industry
So why where they caused?
Andrew said: “People like to think the cause of everything is man made. The earth is four billion years old.
“Earthquakes are pretty rare but do occur naturally. They have been recorded in Surrey and Sussex for 700 years.
“There are dozens of small faults located in Surrey but they are all orientated east to west. They only move a few millimetres a year but stresses do build up.
“Everything runs East to West. We are north of Gatwick so it is impossible for the fault to move that way.
Now hang on, There’s a lot of spinning in the above, Ok, and do correct me, those without money to lose…. firstly, the small intensities. The favorable conditions include shallow depth, 300m-900m is shallow..
Secondly, how deep are these local water extractions? 50m? 100m?, and are they into anything close to the formations at the average epicentre depth?
Whilst there is no High volume Hydraulic fracturing (the technique most commonly called “fracking”) at Brockham, there have been (please correct me if I am wrong) acid treatments akin to what is known as matrix acidising, usually applied with a coiled tube and approximately 5000psi rated pump…… and fluid re-injection is often applied into an unproductive nearby well, with a pump rated at maybe 5000psi, perhaps more? and this combination is a relatively recent advent at Brockham?
Although historic production at Brockham may have been wholly conventional, this acidising/re-injection combination, combined with the flow testing of traditionally ‘tight’ shale based formations, is better described as semi-conventional, though many wouldn’t be so polite.
Brockham, though drilled in 1987 has not been in continuous production, and only recently have horizontal drilling and the above techniques allowed hope that profitable production might continue.
Brockham has had subsurface operations in the last 18 months, not least, re-injection of produced water.
There are two active wells, one for input, one for output.
The re-injected water also can contain any recovered acidising fluids which are certainly not naturally present in the Portland Sandstone, which is naturally porous. If re-injection is in future to be carried out in the Kimmeridge shale, (to replace the produced water where it came from), we have a quite different scenario of a tight, soft, horizontally fractured oil shale being blasted with a high pressure pump. A shale re-injection program relies on the clays accepting the produced water at the rate it is extracted/injected if it is to be used successfully and conventionally. This is unlikely without open fractures or faulting. It is this process which could replicate the effects of Hydraulic fracturing without crossing the arbitrary line into the UK’s current official definition of fracking.
Re-injection is to support production. The addition of the waste stream from Lidsey oil well, oddly permitted by the E.A. despite being from an entirely different site and strata, could give Angus the extra fluid needed to increase formation pressure.
The shale itself in Brockham has natural horizontal fractures, mainly squeezed shut by the weight from above. Any once open fractures, whether horizontally or vertically, around faulted areas, are likely to be filled in by either carbonate (limestone) or pyrite (fools gold), so mother nature in her infinite wisdom has created Oil companies to inject acid into them, thus dissolving pathways, through which the wondrous fluids may pass.
And 10 km? The faults throughout the Weald are not continuous, but the tectonic stress is. The direction of stress in the Weald is: North to south oriented……but let’s leave all that side of things to the BGS for the moment.
Gregor Williams
A few comments
Whilst there is no High volume Hydraulic fracturing (the technique most commonly called “fracking”) at Brockham, there have been (please correct me if I am wrong) acid treatments akin to what is known as matrix acidising, usually applied with a coiled tube and approximately 5000psi rated pump…… and fluid re-injection is often applied into an unproductive nearby well, with a pump rated at maybe 5000psi, perhaps more? and this combination is a relatively recent advent at Brockham?
Although historic production at Brockham may have been wholly conventional, this acidising/re-injection combination, combined with the flow testing of traditionally ‘tight’ shale based formations, is better described as semi-conventional, though many wouldn’t be so polite.
…….No matrix acidising at Brockham in the producing well
…….Correct re waste water re injections but max pump pressure is not the pressure required to pop it in the reservoir (were it the case that the pump could produce that pressure)
Although historic production at Brockham may have been wholly conventional, this acidising/re-injection combination, combined with the flow testing of traditionally ‘tight’ shale based formations, is better described as semi-conventional, though many wouldn’t be so polite.
…….No matrix acidising of the exisitng well – and no flow testing yet from the side track (which is there to test the Kimmeridge ).
Brockham, though drilled in 1987 has not been in continuous production, and only recently have horizontal drilling and the above techniques allowed hope that profitable production might continue.
…….The side track is more horizontal than the existing well, but its not a long reach horizontal well, and it has yet to be tested. The above techniques have not been used.
The re-injected water also can contain any recovered acidising fluids which are certainly not naturally present in the Portland Sandstone, which is naturally porous.
………Correct – spent acid fluids could be in there if acidisation has been carried out ,though there is no link between porosity and the constituents of the re injection fluid.
If re-injection is in future to be carried out in the Kimmeridge shale, (to replace the produced water where it came from), we have a quite different scenario of a tight, soft, horizontally fractured oil shale being blasted with a high pressure pump. A shale re-injection program relies on the clays accepting the produced water at the rate it is extracted/injected if it is to be used successfully and conventionally. This is unlikely without open fractures or faulting. It is this process which could replicate the effects of Hydraulic fracturing without crossing the arbitrary line into the UK’s current official definition of fracking.
………Reinjection is not about blasting fluids in where they do not want to go. There are a few ifs in this section, so best to see how the oil flows. if tight it will not flow without stimulation, which is a different ball game. If it does, they can pop the water into the depleted portland reservoir (if there is any produced water to speak of).
MARTIN,
PLEASE, FOR ALL on this platform ……. Lets exactly see what I said last summer. ….
I’M WAITING………..
Whilst we are reminiscing about the good old days , shall I cut and paste some of the countless reports and documents highlighting the dangers of Fracking, that I uploaded on to this forum for YOU to comment on ????? WHY is it that you always went very quiet ?????
IT MAY WELL be that on Fraggle Rock, far removed from planet earth this type of behaviour is acceptable , but here on mother earth we require answers and evidence , which I’m afraid you’ve always been quite lacking on ……
AMANDA, you are new to this platform, so you can be forgiven for not understanding the way MARTIN operates……..
Get Surrey –
https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/special-features/local-oil-company-angus-energy-14988544
You are full of joy Amanda! Last time I heard someone making statements regarding whether people could fly abroad and what size their families should be was some while ago, from China. I think even they have seen the futility of that.
Did you not enjoy your two children making their way through life, that you now would prefer they have none themselves? Not a personal question, just I find it strange that someone finds it a matter that is not for individuals to decide themselves. I have two children, and am glad I do but would never advise them what choice they should make in this regard. But then, clearly, there is a big difference between us that you seem to want to stop people doing things you disagree with. Meanwhile, the population of the UK will continue to increase, and air traffic will continue to increase. Someone, somewhere will need to plan for that, and is.
You’re right Martin, I’m not full of joy, I’m very afraid that if we continue as we are that the planet will no longer be able to sustain life, I am scared at what the future holds for my very much loved and wanted children and that they will not have a healthy planet on which to live out long fulfilling lives, but that they will face increasing temperatures, rising sea levels, melted poles, food and water shortages, polluted air, water and land and the increasing unrest and war those problems will bring. I love my children dearly and would never impose anything on them but if they were discussing whether or not to have children I would put my views across, why wouldn’t I? Do you not advise your children on important matters if they ask for your opinion? Happy Earth overshoot day for last Thursday to you, your children and grandchildren Martin. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/earth-overshoot-day-humans-fossil-fuels-natural-resources-date-year-a8471121.html
Sorry Amanda, I have a lovely grandson who has a chromosome different to me. If my son had requested my opinion I would not have given it, but suggested all the pros and cons should be considered. But, I knew he did that anyway, so it never surfaced. Even on much more mundane subjects, I might take both sons to football matches, but it was their choice which clubs they wanted to support. We didn’t speak about Brexit during the build up to the vote, but I know they both voted to Leave, for the reasons in the next paragraph and because they to wanted no restriction upon their horizons and life experiences.
I suppose it is how we developed our outlook on life. Both my parents spent 6 years of their lives in the Forces between 1939 and 1945 and the one outcome of that they passed on was they hoped that would mean they would have the freedom not to be told what to do, and hoped for the same for their children.
I have not had a holiday overseas for around 10 years, simply because I have visited most places in the world I want to, and am content now to do without the travel. But, my children have not reached that situation and why should I try and influence them to narrow their horizons and experiences? They are their own people anyway, so it would do no good. Humans are good at solving issues. We had sewage floating in the sea, so we stopped it getting to the sea (mainly). We will do the same with plastic. We have more people worldwide over using fossil fuel. I suspect we will end up with much of that fossil fuel being converted to hydrogen and largely solve that problem. Trying to ban those three is difficult (the first impossible), but we will find solutions through science not forcing people to pay through the nose for mainly false solutions.
I see Jack is still around. Still confused with fracking and the Weald, but that’s what you get with earthquakes and confusion of causal links, speculation and time lines. By the way Jack, I answered many of your questions regarding fracking but your inability to be able, or willing, to follow simple references as in the NT chat, probably means you still have not had the “benefit” of that input. However, not a problem. We will shortly see what we will see, rather than speculate based upon 2013. Equally, for all this last desperate attempt, we will see what we will see for the Weald-but maybe take a little longer.
Sorry if there are typos in there, but my keyboard is becoming a bit unreliable. I shall shortly have to give Sir Jim a bit more income.
MARTIN ,
Referring to your above post on jackthelad.
[Edited by moderator]
FOR THE RECORD and ALL the members on this forum, supply the link showing exactly where YOU are referring to …..
I say YOU are NOT telling the truth, therefore NOW is the time to back up what you have said in your above post. ….
Please supply a link for ALL to click on to and read .
I’M WAITING …………
MARTIN ,
Regarding your above post to jackthelad.
FOR THE RECORD , I fully understand Fracking , the Weald and Earthquakes .
PLEASE PROVIDE A LINK to show exactly where you are referring to …..
I’ M WAITING ………
MARTIN ,
OK, so you want to go down memory lane and reminisce over the good old days with jackthelad , that’s great, let’s start here then …
As all the following experts in the field of Medicine, Science and Engineering are ALL warning us of the dangers associated with FRACKING …… What is YOUR professional opinion on the following ?????? ( don’t forget to include supporting evidence and links )
BREAST CANCER ACTION Don’t Frack With Our Health.
https://www.bcaction.org/our-take-on-breast-cancer/stop-fracking/
British Medical Journal ( BMJ ) Fracking is linked to asthma increase, study finds
https://www.bmj.com/content/354/bmj.i3992?int_source=trendmd&int_medium=trendmd&int_campaign=trendmd
EUROPE Enviournmental Science…..
The risk of hydraulic fracturing on public health in the UK and the UK’s fracking legislation
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5045126/
Isn’t this great MARTIN and to think I’m just getting warmed up…… Many more to follow …
AS YOU have in the past , always totally ignored and failed to respond to any of these EXPERT reports that I’ve put forward warning about the dangers of Fracking. It’s now very important to ALL members of this forum ,that you now finally do .
Here’s more MARTIN ,
COMPENDIUM OF SCIENTIFIC, MEDICAL, AND MEDIA FINDINGS DEMONSTRATING RISKS AND HARMS OF FRACKING
https://www.psr.org/blog/resource/compendium-of-scientific-medical-and-media-findings-demonstrating-risks-and-harms-of-fracking/
A NEW FRACKING LANDSCAPE: REPORT ON RECENT SCIENCE SHOWS OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE OF HARM
https://www.psr.org/blog/2018/03/13/a-new-fracking-landscape-report-on-recent-science-shows-overwhelming-evidence-of-harm/
HEY…….. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN , I know that reading through all this must be very tiring and maybe even a little boring , so what I’m going to do is give you a good laugh and direct you to a website that is trying to discredit the above Nobel Peace Price winning organisation , with some of the world’s leading Professors and Doctors of Medicine , Science and Engineering .
ALSO REMEMBER THIS……….. The people from Physicians for Social Resposibility ( PSR ) that have complied the two ABOVE reports…. ARE ALL willing to give their FULL names and traceable track records.
Unlike energyindepth.org
ASK YOURSELF THIS why does energyindepth keep on referring to the United States EPA report , which as you will all know, has widely been discredited on so many fronts ….. Don’t just take my word for it
WHEN AGENCIES BECOME BUSINESSES: THE EPA’S FAILURE TO REGULATE HYDRAULIC FRACTURING
http://www.mjeal-online.org/when-agencies-become-businesses-the-epas-failure-to-regulate-hydraulic-fracturing/
This is one of many reports on EPA’s poor track record ….. CAN WE believe or trust the EPA ????
Have you noticed that NO ONE on energyindepth is willing to put their names to what they have said …… Their report may well of been constructed by the local Kebab Shop owner for all we know.
Anyway mustn’t get to side tracked MARTIN , we have many more to get through, back to business with more to follow .
More MARTIN ,
Fracking Is Dangerous To Your Health — Here’s Why
https://www.forbes.com/sites/judystone/2017/02/23/fracking-is-dangerous-to-your-health-heres-why/
Pollutants from fracking could pose health risk to children, warn researchers
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/25/pollutants-from-fracking-could-pose-health-risk-to-children-warn-researchers
Dangers of Fracking (Here’s What It’s Doing to Your Body)
https://draxe.com/dangers-of-fracking/
Before continuing to list more , I will pause for a short time MARTIN, to let you catch you breath, so that you can fully and carefully respond to all of the above…….
Martin, having worked for many years in special needs with both children and adults I am heartened to hear that you find your grandson lovely, but by your response I can only presume you think I’m in favour of eugenics?! However I’m only assuming that by reading between your lines and I could be totally wrong as you indeed are about me. Perhaps I made the wrong choice of words in saying I would advise my children not to have children but I’m responding quickly whilst doing other things. I should have said if asked if I were in the position of making that decision now (or should I say in another decade as they are far far from having children, first wanting a career and to provide a home for their possible children before having them), I would probably not have any as the future of this planet at this moment in time looks pretty shaky. I raised my children with huge freedoms of choice, including how they chose to be educated. I’ve never imposed my views or will on them in any respect at all apart from showing them how to be loving, responsible, independent thinking, enquiring people. And I have one child who is a Tory and brexiteer, and the other the total opposite, they’ve always been chalk and cheese, and I love the adults they have become.
You also likened me to Mao, did I say in my response that I wanted to enforce a one child policy or prevent people from having holidays abroad? I don’t think I did but excuse me while I adjust my Mao suit collar, I think that a decrease in population absolutely has to happen as if you’d read the earth overshoot article I sent you a link to you will see we are using more resources than our planet can sustain. I happen to think that it is quite selfish to those yet to be born for couples to have more than two children. I know of many religious families who believe it’s their duty to god to not use birth control and have 7 or more children which is in my eyes the height of selfishness towards the planet and it’s inhabitants of the future. There’s plenty of info on the web regarding the impact of population growth, you can google it, or giggle it as you like to say when deriding peoples use of it when looking for information. The internet is both a blessing and a hindrance and when looking for information it’s alway best to cross reference and fact check.
When it comes to holidays abroad, you’ve been very lucky to be so widely travelled Martin. However, as I said, why do people think it’s their right to fly and to have access to even more frequent and cheaper flights when we know it’s detrimental to the climate? If we don’t build more runways and don’t increase the number of flights people will just have to be content with what’s on offer, simples.
I’m not the controlling despot or communist you seem to have me down as, far from it. I’m just a loving mother and I want to see this beautiful planet that sustains all life protected from further catastrophic damage. It’s the only one we’ve got and things were going ok with regards the health of the planet until the industrial revolution kicked in, which has been of great good too, don’t get me wrong, but we didn’t have the foresight or knowledge to see what kind of damage we were doing to the planet. But we do know now, so let’s fix it before it’s too late. Sadly, reading between the lines of your comments, correct me if I’m wrong Martin, but you seem to suggest that we should all live hedonistically, and do whatever the hell we like even if it is detrimental to our future survival as a species. If that’s the case then my only hope is that there are more people in the world with a similar mindset to my own as opposed to yours, otherwise we are totally F***ed.
How should we slow/reverse population growth, how should we kerb the materialistic over consumption that is in full swing right now? By communist type laws and restrictions? No, by education, change only happens when people take responsibility for their own behaviour when they are given the knowledge and are offered alternatives and this is happening but too slowly.
What do I do to make a tiny microscopic difference? I grow my own fruit and veg, and supplement that with food from a local food initiative that I’ve been a volunteer with for 8 years. We sell food and food products grown or made by local producers to lessen the carbon foot print of the food on our plates and promote local sustainability. I also volunteer with our year old community fridge food waste project where people can take supermarket food waste that would have ended up in landfill for free. Our tiny project has saved around 11 tonnes of food from landfill so far. I started a repair cafe in the town in February of this year in and effort to encourage people to throw less away. As for transport, my car is used when there’s no other option due to the restrictions of public transport, it’s an elderly car and if I had the money I would buy myself an electric car. I buy my gas and electric on a 100% green energy tariff, I’ve divested money away from fossils fuels to green banks. That’s just a snippet of the small things I do, but as I said earlier if we all divested our money the green energy market would get an absolutely massive boost, enabling use to move towards a greener future at a much needed faster pace than it is at the moment. I cannot for the life of me understand why people don’t do this en masse.
You imply that I’m joyless Martin, I’m not. I’m not all about sticking on a green cape and saving the planet with my lips set in a determined and straight line, I play a huge drum in a samba band, I help organise free public events in the town I live in. I go out of my way to help and support many people. I do all the usual socialising, partying, concert going etc etc and I have holidays. Everything I do is done with love and with joy Martin, I’m just trying as we all are to live a good life. Most of all I love this planet and the life it sustains, I just want it to continue for as long as the sun in the sky allows, and to that end I will resist the digging up of any more fossil fuels in new and ever more damaging ways because we urgently need to stop using it.
Back to the subject in hand, did waste water re-injection cause the tremors, I don’t know, no one does, but I think it only prudent to cease exploration activity until we have the answer.
Re-injecting waste water has got nothing to do with exploration.
Amanda-think you ought to revisit how much oil UK imports. You could start at the number of ships into Fawley Refinery. Your figure of 50k tonnes would not fill one of them. Yes, we do export some as well, but all oil is not equal. Just the same as cars.
Oh dear… what an absolute croc! Mini quakes been happening in the UK for decades and over 300 ‘quakes’ already this year alone. Why have they not been picked up, be ause they are so small and insignificant (just like the quakes around HH), but measuring equipment has not been in place! Put this equipment around the UK and guess what, it’ll record mini quakes where there’s oil exploration or not! This is not a journalist piece, it’s a vindictive story with unscientific claims that the “tremors” are a direct result of oil exploration in Surrey… as mentioned “what a croc”!! This rubbish is utter desperation tin an attempt to sway the decision by SCC on Wednesday 8th, but I would sincerely hope the councillors we see through this feeble attempt by a clearly one sided, biased ‘tree hugging’ journalist wannabe… so sad!
The post does not claim that the tremors are a direct result of oil exploration in Surrey, but says a causal link cannot be ruled out, and there should be a moratorium while the cause is investigated.
The precautionary principle referred to in the piece was part of the Montreal protocol adopted by the UN in 1987 and, it could be argued, should be applied here.
I am sure that everyone associated with the Groningen gas project now wishes that they had paid a little more attention to early warning signs of problems. (I am not suggesting that the Surrey earth tremors will go the same way).
Rubbish… a large majority of people can see EXACTLY what this bias story is hoping for… simply trying to defer the inevitable so you can try and dig up more lies to help your cause! As I said ‘smacks of desperation’ and if the SCC board have an ounce of common sense between them this tripe would simply be dismissed, along with a majority of other bias stories posted on DoD!!
Rubbish , its obvious that those who gambled on investing in these get rich quick schemes are the desperate ones , how is that going btw ? You call anyone who objects a Swampy haha it will be Swampys that wipe the smug grin off your faces .
I got the information from govt statistics page 77 from this document which you can find here https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/729403/Ch3.pdf
As I’m not an expert in reading import/export figures perhaps I’m misreading the tonnage but it still doesn’t explain why we export almost as much as we import. If it’s because we don’t produce a particular grade of oil so we have to import it, it makes a mockery of the argument that we need to dig more out of our own soil to provide energy security/independence don’t you think as we’d still need to import the stuff we don’t have in our own soil? The argument that it has less of a carbon footprint if we dig it out closer to the point of use also falls flat on it’s face here too, as if we don’t have the stuff we need in our own soil we still have to import the same quantities we do now!
Very interesting link here I suggest all you uneducated people take the time to read and DIGEST!!!
https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/special-features/local-oil-company-angus-energy-14988544
Are you going to post this comment!!!
That’s not remotely interesting , more Angus BS .
Ahh, the call centre bad cop…….
Nianjabi, of course!
Sorry Jono, the reply jumped 🙂