People Power in action: Communities in England say ‘No to fracking’
England say no to fracking! Working side-by-side with communities threatened by fracking, Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland is fighting to prevent dangerous shale gas extraction.
“I am determined to fight fracking as I know what the risks are and the potential threat to my community. If we lose here in Lancashire it will encourage energy companies to apply for permission to frack all across the country. This would affect thousands of people as well as threaten our environment.”
Barbara Richardson, Roseacre Awareness Group
The tenacity of local residents and campaigners across the United Kingdom has kept the fracking industry at bay since 2011.
Lancashire residents have been leading the campaign locally to protect communities from fracking. Their extraordinary efforts have won support from all over the country and helped keep the UK frack-free, despite the UK government’s staunch support for the industry.
“We have discovered that we have a community through this movement and support is growing stronger by the day. We have an incredible network of autonomous but united groups throughout Lancashire and the UK and links with individuals and groups in Scotland, Ireland and Canada.”
Ian Roberts, chairman of Residents Action on Fylde Fracking
Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland has provided legal and planning advice and expertise, and launched legal cases on behalf of communities to challenge UK government decisions. They have also helped supply monitoring equipment to register changes in air quality and noise, and provided training and materials.
The moment Lancashire County Council rejected Cuadrilla’s application to frack at Preston New Road. Photo: © Amelia Collins/ Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The campaign against fracking has been taken to a national level, targeting the UK government and slowing the industry’s progress. In 2015, the Lancashire County Council voted to block fracking at Preston New Road – but the UK government overturned the ruling and gave fracking the final go ahead in July 2018.
“Unite with us and fight fracking with every breath. To ignore this issue is too costly to our health and wellbeing and that of our planet.”
Barbara Richardson
As machinery was delivered to Preston New Road, mobilizations intensified. Hundreds of people, religious groups, unions, farmers and families carried out massive demonstrations. The project is behind schedule, largely due to the daily opposition from local people at the roadside and hundreds of people regularly flocking to the site to support them.
Police guard the fracking site at Preston New Road, Lancashire. Photo: © Jamie Peters/ Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The government has proposed fast-tracking fracking in England by making it a “permitted development”, which would remove the need for fracking companies to apply for council planning permission. Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland are heaping pressure on the government to drop this proposal, in which fracking would be covered by the same planning rules as putting up a fence.
“Once you get aboard this train you find that the rightness of our cause will instill in you a determination to keep going, and you will also find that your fellow passengers are wonderful, inspirational people. You will have found a community of diverse individuals with real values and a common sense of justice.”
Ian Roberts
Around 40,000 people have signed a petition urging the government to allow local councils to make planning decisions on fracking, and to not allow fracking companies to drill without the need to apply for planning permission.
Campaigners from Lancashire and Friends of the Earth outside the Home Office Department for Communities and Local Government building, after delivering a petition of over 180,000 signatures calling on the Government to respect Lancashire’s decision to reject fracking. Photo: © Chris Ratcliffe/ Greenpeace
Barbara Richardson lives in Roseacre, just 500m from another proposed Cuadrilla fracking site. The more she learnt about fracking, the more horrified she became about its impacts not just on her community, but every community across the UK.
Barbara Richardson at the end of her driveway, which is the proposed Roseacre fracking site. Photo: © Amelia Collins/ Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
“Fracking will lead to devastation of our beautiful Lancashire countryside and communities, destruction of our tourism and agricultural industries, and risks to our health and groundwater. Not to mention a continuing reliance on fossil fuels and the dreadful impact this would have on climate change.”
Ian Roberts
Ian lives a few miles from Barbara, in Saint Anne’s. His community joined with Barbara’s and seven others to form Frack Free Lancashire, which petitions politicians and campaigns against fracking. They also link up with national and international campaign groups and networks to spread the anti-fracking message more widely.
“I hope to see the banishment of the fracking industry throughout the world and a complete movement away from fossil fuels and into a clean and sustainable energy future.”
Ian Roberts
Main image: © Amelia Collins
