Greenfudge.org: Energy security: An excuse for fracking in Europe?
A creative protest action by Greenpeace is drawing attention to the ominous developments of fracking in the United Kingdom. Fossil fuel companies and the government are pushing for industrial-scale domestic shale gas and oil exploitation while hiding behind the shield of “energy security”. The international civil organisation is protesting against an upcoming law that would allow horizontal drilling for natural gas under British homes without the property owners’ permission.
The activists mimicked fracking company workers when they approached the prime minister’s home and set up a fence line around it. The information board on the fence warns you that they are just drilling under your home, and if you have complaints, you should call this number which is in fact the phone number of David Cameron’s office. A compensatory check for 50 pound sterlings was also left by the entrance. According to the bill, this sum is the upper limit of drilling compensations for the landowners.
In just several months, the ship of Cameron’s coalition government turned with swelling sails to fracking waters. What is behind this rush? Did the ongoing crisis in Ukraine cause so much concern about energy security that decision makers throughout Europe became so eager to follow the overseas example? If the pipelines from the East are running through a civil-war stricken failed state, maybe it’s reasonable to decrease energy-dependance from that direction.