Good news: Scotland freezes fracking.
Scotland says: Don’t frack. Photo: the-news-daily.com
Energy Minister Fergus Ewing announced that the moratorium would stand until “a full public consultation on unconventional oil and gas extraction” had been initiated and completed.
A week later, more good news: the Welsh government also voted to block fracking until it is proven safe for the environment and public health. Note: It cannot be proved safe, since it is everything but.
Neither of these initiatives is an outright ban, but in New York state, years of citizen campaigning led to a similar moratorium, and finally last month to a ban.
For a close look at the dirty business of fracking, see Bold Scientists. Scroll down to chapter 10, The unsolved problem.