Comment & Analysis
It’s hard to know where to stand on the emotive subject of shale gas fracking. On the one hand there are environmental groups that argue that the process is incompatible with climate change targets and could pose significant localised risks to public health. On the other side of the fence, meanwhile, there are industrial groups that insist that the risks associated with the technique are grossly overstated, and that the skills exist to safely extract gas from the ground without any impact on the environment. Furthermore, business groups say, the UK runs the risk of missing out on an enormous opportunity if it sits idly by while other nations forge ahead with their own shale gas plans.
The debate is so bewildering because it is so riddled with entrenched views born of vested interests. Both trade and environmental groups are guilty of creating smoke and mirrors for their own ends, adding to the noisy cacophony of confusion. It’s a shame, because this kind of behaviour gets in the way of any grown-up discussion.
But serious debate about shale gas needs to be had. As the North Sea is only expected to support the UK’s energy policy for 20 more years, there is a pressing need for engineers and other technically qualified people to be given opportunities to meet and share the latest thinking on this alternative energy source. Away from the pressures of lobby, surely a better-informed debate on shale gas extraction can emerge.
Fortunately such a gathering is about to take place. At the end of this month – on 24 February to be precise – a couple of hundred delegates will attend an event that is sure to produce some interesting and timely material. UK Shale Gas: the Engineers’ Summit, organised by our own Institution of Mechanical Engineers, will provide an opportunity for qualified people to have a robust and literate conversation about technical and regulatory processes.
What are the Health and Safety Executive’s and the Environment Agency’s plans for providing a safe operational environment? What measures need to be put in place to ensure high operational standards when managing well integrity? Just how important is the requirement for integrated water management and whole lifecycle processes? All these sorts of issues will be explained, explored and debated in full.
But it isn’t just the technicalities of shale gas that need looking at. Engineers must surely have a role in wider engagement activities – putting themselves forward to conduct discussions with the public at large. This is likely to prove a crucial aspect in ensuring that the topic of shale gas is considered in a more even-handed manner. Such an important and in-depth conversation cannot surely be left to the media, press and politicians alone.
Shale presents the UK with a unique opportunity: to develop an integrated supply chain where the drill rigs, steel, well stimulation and waste management equipment required to service the industry can be home-grown. But it’s an opportunity that needs to be considered in an even-handed manner, with environmental concerns central to any discussions. The UK Shale Gas Summit provides a timely opportunity to chart a way forward, and PE looks forward to presenting the main findings in subsequent issues.
Contact Lee Hibbert, PE Editor, at Unit G4, Harbour Yard, London SW10 0XD. lee.hibbert@caspianmedia.com