What the Frack?

So, after all the news about plans on fracking in the UK, and the arguments for and again, I figured surely the best way to get one's head round what is going on, and what position should one stand in on fracking, what I can provide from my readings on fracking on exactly what it is, and its pros and cons! 


Currently, during 2013, the government was solidly behind development of the fossil fuel shale gas industry and was offering to give shale gas companies favorable tax treatment for the unconventional energy source. Also they stated they would turn 100% of business tax proceeds over to local councils instead of the usual 50% which has been seen as controversial in some parts of the media
How its done:

• It is a way of getting at "hidden" reserves of natural gas, petroleum -- even water.

• Far, deep underground, around 7,000 feet/2,133 meters below the surface, rocks like shale can hold gases, water or oil in their pores. Hydraulic fracking moves that resource from the pores of the rocks to production wells 

• It's done by creating horizontal "veins" off a vertical well, and then pumping that horizontal well full of water (plus sand and some chemical additives) at an extremely high pressure. This causes fissures in the rock that branch off, releasing gas, oil or water into the cracks created. The gases and oils are forced into the horizontal wells and then flow up to storage tanks with the water that comes back up.

• So a deep well is drilled (imagine the depths as six Empire State Buildings down underground - that is crazy!) When the well reaches the right depth, it takes a right or left turn and this is referred to as the kick off point and becomes horizontal.

•  Steel casing fits in the wellbore (the hole drilled). The steel is intended to protect groundwater and the surrounding area from any potential leakage during hydraulic fracturing. Down at the horizontal section of the well, the steel is perforated through with a tool that can penetrate the steel and cement of the well to create small holes for water or tiny particles to escape through. Water is then pumped in at an extremely high pressure.
• When the solution reaches the perforated points, the liquid is too much for the rock to absorb, and the rock cracks. It takes three to 10 days for fracturing to be complete. Additives and sand found in the water mixture hold open these fissures, allowing the gas (or whatever resource) to escape and be brought up to the surface in the water that's pumped back up, and separated.

Pros: 

• Provides people with loads of accessible resources that are normally trapped in the pores of rock.

• Natural gas is more environmentally friendly than oil or coal as it burns more cleanly

• Creates jobs and revenue

• Energy can become cheaper

• Can create trade with other countries

• Our shale deposits may not even be frackable

Cons:

• At the moment, the UK only has the 'potential' - it will take 5 years, and drilling of 20 to 40 fracking wells just to find out if the UK has a viable shale gas industry

• It'll be quite the eyesore - drilling and the trucks, pumps, transports and storage containers -- are all still going to be present at the site, along with the necessary related infrastructure.

• Pipelines can cause damage to crops on farmlands and equipment can tear up roads

• the chemicals used can leak into the water supply and/or leaching soil and groundwater (devastating on animals and plants) Shockingly, in the US, fracking well operators are not obliged to report annual releases of toxic chemicals from their wells

• Increase of pollution

• More than 650 products containing chemicals with potential cancer-causing properties have been used in fracking

• Millions of gallons of water is wasted, and water depletion in areas can occur

• And let's face it, to live near a fracking well would be a terrible experience, and one that people do not deserve to have to live by. Drilling can disrupt lives, including heightened noise levels aided by the transportation of materials, construction of facilities and drilling process itself; deterioration of air quality with the rise of diesel fumes; and implications of potentially destroying communities' access to clean water, including additional costs and efforts to transport and store water sourced from elsewhere. Communicates may then want to move, the homes near fracking areas would decrease in value, and we may end up having communities and home areas destroyed by the fracking practices.

• Ministers are currently now also planning to reform the trespass laws to make it easier for fracking to take place without homeowner's consent. 

• Possible risk of earthquakes occurring? (I question mark this as this is only correlated, and not proven in the UK) 

I tried to make this post as unbiased as possible, and looking through it, I may not have succeeded. But what can I say. This just might be representative of the fact that less than one in four people support fracking in Britain and support is continuing to decline. If only how we felt could be representative in the government's actions. Hopefully, this has been enlightening to anyone who didn't know a lot about fracking. 
Thanks for reading!