Lancashire Say No To Fracking
By Paul Homewood
In a surprise decision, Lancashire County Council’s Development Control Committee have rejected the advice of their own planning officers and thrown out Cuadrillo’s application to frack at the Little Plumpton site.
Incredibly, the reasons they give are impact on the landscape and noise:
1) The development would cause an unacceptable adverse impact on the landscape, arising from the drilling equipment, noise mitigation equipment, storage plant, flare stacks and other associated development. The combined effect would result in an adverse urbanising effect on the open and rural character of the landscape and visual amenity of local residents contrary to policies DM2 Lancashire Waste and Minerals Plan and Policy EP11 Fylde Local Plan.
2) The development would cause an unacceptable noise impact resulting in a detrimental impact on the amenity of local residents which could not be adequately controlled by condition contrary to policies DM2 Lancashire Waste and Minerals Plan and Policy EP27 Fylde Local Plan.
If this really was a concern, no application for windfarms would ever be approved, and for that matter any industrial development.
In reality, the Council have cravenly capitulated to the agenda of Greenpeace and other protestors, afraid no doubt of further trouble if they had gone ahead.
Significantly, they have not used any of the well worn, and well trashed, arguments usually wheeled out by Greenpeace, such as water pollution and earthquakes. If they had, I have no doubt they would have been thrown out in the courts.
We can only hope that the decision will be challenged by Cuadrillo, or overturned by the government.
In the meantime, a few facts that Lancashire CC might like to consider:
- Last year, the UK consumed 60.0 million tonnes oil equivalent of natural gas, 32% of all energy used.
- Natural gas production in the UK, from the North Sea and other sources, amounted to 32.9 Mtoe, leaving a shortfall of 27.1 Mtoe which had to be imported.
- North Sea proven reserves are 200 billion cubic metres, effectively just six years worth at current production levels.
- Output of natural gas in the UK has more than halved in the last ten years, from 86.7 Mtoe in 2004 to 32.9 Mtoe.
Demand for gas is likely to grow in the medium term, as coal is phased out.
Perhaps the enlightened councillors in Lancashire would like to tell us all where all this gas is going to come from, and how we are all going to heat our homes and generate our electricity?
Do they think it grows on trees?
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NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT 
This decision will apparently cause a new invention to appear in time for us not to need gas. Because, as you know, all that is needed is some pressure on Big Hydrocarbon to make them invent a better source of energy.
Dicks!
Importing natural gas for a foreseeable future is cool providing we have the faith in the kommunist Papa of climat change before the Lord.
As you say effectively LCC have simply passed the decision-making parcel to government, allowing them to over-rule LCC and thus take any blame from the green blob.
HMG needs to get tough on this – it’s been 6 years now ffs and still not a single test well is sunk. An assumption of approval should be in place subject only to suitable road access.
It’s hard to believe that the country were the Industrial Revolution started 250 years ago and had coal cooleries all over the country, plus satanic mills producing a wealth of iron and steel is now turning to the #AGWstooges Green Religion Commandements. What about oil rigs working in Witch Farm. Are they closing those produtive wells? As the celebrated British-Polish writer would say: Madness!
Just beat me on the Industrial revolution. We are obviously not going to get another one with these luddites in power. Maybe they would change their minds if we cut off all energy supplies to them, rather that than that we should go cold. Cowardice in the face of the green people killers. I am really sick and tired of these jumped up Councillors, illiterate in most things, ignoring reallity that we live with.
Have the Turkeys just voted for Thanks Giving and Christmas as well?
An absolutely ridiculous decision. Take a look at the Preston New Road Little Plumpton site on google maps. The site is nearly a mile away from any houses off an A-road near the M55 junction. I doubt you’d hear the drilling noise over the traffic roar – and anyway the drilling lasts for a matter of weeks after which operation is near silent. Streetview shows the area is crisscrossed by electricity pylons – so the idea that the temporary drilling rig will ruin the landscape is nonsense. I hope the council’s decision will be overturned on appeal with the same speed that wind turbines and gypsy pitches are forced through on appeal.
You might wish to add to the list of facts that LCC need to consider, the fact that as the amount of renewable energy available to the grid increases, so too does the demand for gas powered back-up.
I’ve often thought it strange, that Cuadrilla and the rest, choose attractive countryside to start drilling. While the land may be cheaper than a brownfield site, It must surely make sense, in the early days at least, to drill somewhere that is already industrialised.
I would’ve thought the ideal place to test drill is in the middle of nowhere? That nicely side-steps any residents concerns over noise, traffic and those deadly ‘earthquakes’. It also reveals Labour’s ban on fracking in national parks as being all the more malicious: they knew what they were doing.
Gov’t needs to get tough and simply presume approval for trial drilling.
Unfortunately you have to drill where the gas is thought to exist.
Least disruption Bloke down the pub
This ruling simply shows that Britain, and Lancashire in particular, has the price of electricity too low.
It is obvious that not enough windfarms and solar energy farms have not been allowed to come online to show what the green future will entale. Without this direct knowledge the good people Little Plumpton could not possibly have understand. Throwing technical jargon and numbers at people is foolhardy, what they require is a real experience of real renewable power services. So close all the coal fired generation plants, and Lord Deben to step-up to the plate.
And yes I know Lancashire County Council rejected the bid on the grounds of “unacceptable noise impact” and “adverse urbanising effect on the landscape”. But I believe Lord Deben is more than able to launch the required camouflage of political smoke and mirrors to effect the lowering of any windfarm’s visual profile. Certainly better than Cuadrilla. That is to say he’s probably more adept at acquiring taxpayer funds to pay-off the local dissident residents.
How many of these Luddites live in Lancashire? How many work? How many vote? How many belong to Greenpeace and WWF/ FOE? How many are fully paid activists?
I think the answers are easy. None, None None, All All.
Now if only the gas companies had the guts to say.. ..
“Ok, you don’t want gas?.. we can help you with that ! ”
…. and just turn off the gas to that area.
Nutters…