Letters Between UK Gov., Agencies, Show That Fracking Will Be Minimally Regulated - Guardian

[hatrack]

EDIT

But a series of letters seen by the Guardian between the company, a former oil and gas engineer with experience of fracking, and officials in the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), the Environment Agency (EA), and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), shows that no government body has overall responsibility for monitoring the nascent industry.

The letters show:

• Government inspectors from three agencies have made only two random and a handful of pre-arranged visits to Cuadrilla's exploratory operations since work began 18 months ago.

• The government has no specific regulations on "unconventional" gas exploration located within hundreds of metres of settlements. It is relying on old regulations developed for offshore wells.

• No environment impact survey has been conducted by the EA or Lancashire County Council.

• No study has been released on the possible links between the small earthquakes that took place in Lancashire and the fracking operation being carried out by Cuadrilla at the time.

EDIT

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/sep/23/fracking-industry-minimal-regulation-uk