Category Archives: News

Latest news from FFL!

Malignant human cell transformation of Marcellus Shale gas drilling flow back water

Unfortunately this link only provides highlights of the article but these provide the basic information that

This is the first report of potential cytotoxicity and transforming activity of Marcellus shale gas mining flow back to mammalian cells.

• Barium and Strontium were elevated in flow back water exposed cells.

• Flow back water malignantly transformed cells and formed tumor in athymic nude mice.

• Flow back transformed cells exhibited altered transcriptome with dysregulated cell migration pathway and adherent junction pathway.

The full article can be purchased but the terms an conditions only allow personal use, however the fact that this study has been undertaken and published is enough to warrant some serious questions.

The highlights can be accessed here…….

 

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Fylde fracking group pins its hopes on belief

Residents of a community who oppose fracking in their area have taken inspiration from a festive decoration to battle on against big business and the government.

Members of the Preston New Road Action Group say they are starting the New Year with an unwavering promise to fight shale gas exploration company Cuadrilla’s appeal for the monitoring and fracking explorations at the Little Plumpton site near their homes.

Full Story here…….

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Withdrawal of decontamination emergency vehicles ‘risks security’

Below are the areas where they intend to withdraw the decontamination units, for those in the south this probably not of any great significance. For those in the “desolate north” this could be of extreme significance if fracking does go ahead, how will the emergency services deal with a major chemical spill or major pollution event?????

Alfreton, Derbyshire; Broughton, Buckinghamshire; Blandford, Dorset; Bovey Tracey, Devon and Somerset; Burton, Staffordshire; Canley, West Midlands; Cheltenham, Gloucestershire; East Greenwich, London; Godstone, Surrey; Hereford, Hereford and Worcester; Morecambe, Lancashire; Penzance, Cornwall; Plaistow, London; Slade Park, Oxfordshire; Southern, Leicestershire; St Albans, Hertfordshire; St Neots, Cambridgeshire; Stalybridge, Greater Manchester; Stanmore, London; Walsall, West Midlands; Wimbledon, London; Winsford, Cheshire.

Read the full story here…….

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Only Britain flies the flag for hydraulic fracturing in Europe

“The government is ignoring evidence of the risks and the wishes of local communities, by weakening regulation and opening up more of the country to fracking,” Rose Dickinson of Friends of the Earth told the BBC.

“Spreading the fracking threat to new areas will only increase opposition to it. Despite having had licences for years, the industry still hasn’t been able to persuade anyone to give fracking the go-ahead.”

Mr Lambert acknowledges the outlook for fracking in the UK is far from certain.

“Describing shale production within the UK as unproblematic would be misguided,” he says.

Read the full story here…….

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Fracking plans are driving an even more damaging ideological agenda

Interesting article from: Paul Mobbs – 21st December 2015 with a lot of links leading to articles revealing the full extent of the Governments attempts to bury bad news including fracking and changes to fracking regulations!

“The UK’s insistence on opening up the UK to fracking is symptomatic of a deeper malaise, writes Paul Mobbs. Of course we need a change of government, but more than that, we need a deeper, enduring change of the nation’s governance if we are ever to effect the transition to sustainable policies on energy and environment. It’s time for the UK to become truly democratic.”

Read the full article here…….

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LCC tell the government what they think!

Today, 17 December 2015, there was a meeting of the Full Council of LCC

We understand that the following motion was put to a vote

Agenda Part C – Notices of Motion submitted under Procedural Standing Order 14. 2.1(a)

“1. By County Councillor Steve Holgate:

Lancashire County Council has spent significant time and resources ensuring that the process of determining planning applications on Fracking in Lancashire has been open, transparent and well informed.

The Development Control Committee received evidence and opinion from organisations both in favour of and opposed to Fracking, as well as from local resident groups, local businesses and public health professionals.

Whilst national government is rightly entitled to take a view and determine national policy regarding energy, we believe that the determination of individual planning applications should remain with the County Council as it is best able to consider local planning issues.

The Secretary of State is a member of a cabinet with a clear policy in favour of Fracking and he has made statements in favour of Fracking.

It is therefore inappropriate for him to determine the planning appeals on Roseacre Wood and Preston New Road in Lancashire because of clear evidence of pre- determination.

Lancashire County Council requests that the Secretary of State takes no part in the final determination of the Preston New Road or Roseacre Wood appeal decisions.

Council instructs the chief executive of Lancashire County Council to write to the Prime Minister and Secretary of State informing them of the opinions of the County Council.”

We believe that the motion was carried with

45 for
1 against
18 abstentions

Well done LCC for showing some backbone and setting an example for the rest of the country!

Full story here…….

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Breaking News – 14th Round new oil and gas licences confirmed

By (Drill or drop) on

The Oil and Gas Authority has formally offered all 159 licences announced in August.

27 licences in the first tranche of the 14th licensing round and 132 in the second tranche have been confirmed. 47 companies have been offered licences.

57 licences have no conditions over activities in the licence area. 75 have some conditions which prohibit activites at or near the surface in part of the licence area.

The successful companies nclude Cuadrilla, Third Energy, INEOS,  Egdon, Hutton, IGas, and South Western. We’ll be posting more details on who has got what soon.

There is more information on the OGA website here…….

There is an interactive map here….

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Fracking under national parks approved by MPs amid acrimony

Labour and Lib Dem accuse government of sneaking plans through ‘back door’ after giving no time for Commons debate

MPs have voted to allow fracking under Britain’s national parks, drawing accusations that the government has sneaked the measure through parliament without a proper debate.

Ministers used a statutory instrument – a form of secondary legislation – to push through the new rules, which means legislation can pass into law without a debate in the House of Commons. MPs voted in favour by 298 to 261.

Read the full story in the Guardian here…….

Full list of MP votes here……..

Lancashire MPs voted (only 4 voted against, shame on the rest) :-

Borough                                                   MP                                 Party                        Voted

Blackburn BC                                             Kate Hollern                  Labour                      Abstained
Blackpool North and Cleveleys BC             Paul Maynard               Conservative             FOR
Blackpool South BC                                   Gordon Marsden           Labour                      Against
Burnley BC                                                Julie Cooper                  Labour                      Abstained
Chorley CC                                                Lindsay Hoyle               Labour                      Abstained
Fylde CC                                                    Mark Menzies               Conservative             FOR
Hyndburn BC                                             Graham Jones              Labour                       Against
Lancaster and Fleetwood CC                    Catherine Smith           Labour                       Against
Morecambe and Lunesdale CC                  David Morris                 Conservative             FOR
Pendle BC                                                  Andrew Stephenson    Conservative             FOR
Preston BC                                                Mark Hendrick               Lab/Cooperative       Against
Ribble Valley CC                                        Nigel Evans                  Conservative             FOR
Rossendale and Darwen BC                      Jake Berry                    Conservative             FOR
South Ribble CC                                        Seema Kennedy           Conservative             FOR
Wyre and Preston North CC                      Ben Wallace                 Conservative             FOR

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BBC News – Fracking adversaries gear up for the next round

Lancashire County Council versus Downing Street doesn’t seem like a fair fight.

So Cuadrilla’s appeal against Lancashire County Council’s decision will not be decided by a planning inspector, but by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Greg Clark.

No prizes for guessing which side he’ll come down on, say environmentalists.

Read the full story from the BBC News Channel here…….

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