“Woefully inadequate” regulation of UK onshore oil and gas risks environmental damage – new study
Regulation of the UK onshore shale industry is “lax, fragmented and frequently incompetent”, a new study has concluded.
Updated: Geological faults challenge fracking in the Fylde – new study
Complex geology in one of the UK’s leading shale gas regions places a major constraint on exploration and production, scientists have concluded.
Community group challenges Cuadrilla’s view of geology at fracking site
People living near Cuadrilla’s Lancashire fracking site have said there are “serious and fundamental errors” in the company’s interpretation of local geology.
Guest post: Why I object to Cuadrilla’s permit change – Richard Marshall
Last month, DrillOrDrop reported on proposals by Cuadrilla to vary its environmental permit for the Preston New Road fracking site.
DrillOrDrop’s most-viewed posts of 2018
Cuadrilla’s Preston New Road site grabbed the attention of readers during 2018. Seven of the 10 most-read posts on DrillOrDrop in the past 12 months were about activities or protests at the site. Also in the top 10 posts with readers were Europa’s surprise announcement that it was […]
Guest post: The changing picture of geology beneath Cuadrilla’s fracking site
Graphic of drilling through an idealised shale rock layer. Source: Cuadrilla Resource In the past few years, the locations of geological faults and even whole rock strata have moved as we learn more about the geology below Cuadrilla’s Lancashire fracking site.
Updated: 0.3M tremor recorded near Cuadrilla’s fracking site
The British Geological Survey recorded a small earth tremor today near Cuadrilla’s fracking site on the edge of Blackpool. This follows three micro-seismic events yesterday.
Cuadrilla completes second shale gas well and prepares to frack as hosepipe ban is announced
Cuadrilla said this morning it had finished drilling the UK’s second horizontal shale gas well and would soon prepare for hydraulic fracturing at the site in Lancashire. The announcement coincided with news that a hose pipe ban for residents in the county would begin on 5 August.
Beware of fracking in UK mining areas, says earthquake expert
Fracking near geological faults in former coal mining areas could trigger earthquakes and should not take place without careful assessment of all available geological data, according to one of the UK’s leading experts on the subject.
Guest post by David Smythe: the geology and oil potential of Horse Hill
In this guest post, David Smythe challenges the interpretation of faults around the Horse Hill “Gatwick Gusher” oil site in Surrey. He argues that the results of flow tests at the well can’t be applied to the whole of the Weald of southern England and predicts there will […]
