Fracking given the green light after legal challenge fails

Fracking for shale gas can begin for the first time in the UK since it was linked to causing earthquakes in 2011.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

This comes after a legal challenge to stop fracking near Preston in Lancashire failed, giving energy firm Cuadrilla the green light to drill two wells at the site.

Anti-fracking campaigners had suggested at the High Court that Lancashire County Council failed to properly assess safety risks, however Mr Justice Superstone said there was “no evidence”. 

This is the first time fracking has been allowed in the UK in the seven years since 2011’s earthquakes and could potentially open the door for more fracking around the country. 

It has been earmarked for a number of sites across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire however proposals have been met with opposition from anti-fracking campaign groups.

This includes a site near Misson, in Bassetlaw, where firm Island Gas Limited (IGas) want to start the fracking process.

This was met by fierce opposition by group Bassetlaw Against Fracking, which say the process would be “dangerous towards wildlife”.