April 2019
Price: £95 PLUS VAT
Format: DOWNLOADABLE PDF
This seminar took place at a time of significant policy development, including consultations on changes to the planning process for potential hydraulic fracturing sites, as well as government guidelines being deemed unlawful by the High Court.
With Scotland set to finalise its fracking policy, the introduction of blocks to fracking in Northern Ireland and Wales, and resistance from some local authorities in England - including Manchester and London - delegates considered the potential opportunities for industry and implications for local communities of moving shale gas into the NSIP regime.
Sessions examined the effect across stakeholder groups of the current planning process and further options going forward, with discussion on challenges for putting into place key infrastructure.
Attendees focused on the next steps for environmental regulation, following the launch of the Shale Environmental Regulator Group and the compulsory community pre-application consultation for shale gas development. Further sessions addressed the concerns of local communities and environmental campaigners - including water pollution, tremors and drilling emissions.
As industry begins to produce shale gas from UK wells, discussion looked at potential next steps for overcoming barriers to the commercialisation of domestic shale into the UK energy mix - as well as questions around the economic viability of the sector and the implications for further investment and exploration for additional wells.