The Christian Science Monitor: Amid Ukraine crisis, Europe weighs fracking

Fracking has transformed the United States into the world’s largest producer of natural gas, and now Europe is weighing the pros and cons of the controversial technique as it seeks greater energy independence from its chief gas supplier, Russia.

The move comes amid the unprecedented crisis in relations between Russia and Ukraine that began when Moscow annexed Crimea earlier this year and then threw its support to pro-Russian Ukrainian separatists battling Kiev.

An estimated 16 percent of Russian gas destined for Europe flows through Ukraine, and since Russia meets around a third of Europe’s demand for oil, natural gas and coal, the threat of gas supply disruptions through Ukraine has set off alarm bells in Brussels. Germany gets 40 percent of its gas from Russia; Finland, Lithuania and Bulgaria are 100 percent dependent.
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