Plans for gas production and a pipeline in a remote part of the North York Moors National Park would have significant effects on the environment, government officials have ruled.
Two leading councillors have supported calls for delays to the decision on plans for gas drilling and lower-volume fracking in the North Yorkshire village of Burniston.
DrillOrDrop’s diary of events in 2026 involving the UK onshore oil and gas industry and campaigns about it.
Fracking for UK onshore oil and gas hit the headlines again during 2025.
The decision on controversial plans to drill for gas and carry out lower volume fracking near the North York Moors National Park should be delayed, a council was urged today.
The government said today there was no evidence of risk from lower volume fracking. This suggests, for the first time, that the government’s proposed ban on fracking will not include lower-volume processes, such as proppant squeeze.
Landowners in North Yorkshire who lease sites to oil and gas companies have been warned they could be responsible for the costs of clean-up and restoration.
The government failed to respond directly to a parliamentary petition about lower-volume fracking for onshore oil and gas, a group of MPs has said.
The council that will decide plans for hydraulic fracturing at Burniston, near Scarborough, has asked the government for more details about its proposed ban on fracking.