The fracking company, Cuadrilla, has begun returning its Becconsall site in Lancashire to farmland after the county council refused another extension of planning permission.
The government has confirmed it will not allow fracking to be carried out from wells drilled at the surface of English protected areas, including National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and special wildlife sites.
The government’s consultation about how new oil and gas licences may affect the UK’s most important sites for wildlife appears to breach good practice guidelines – and has been criticised by a leading nature conservation organisation.
Map credit: UKOGL interactive map (Blue areas are new licenced blocks within the constituency, pink areas are currently licenced) The Thirsk and Malton area of North Yorkshire could become the drilling capital of the UK following the release of new oil and gas licences. But its MP has […]