Fracking has been banned ‘indefinitely’ by the Scottish government – in a move that puts its policy in opposition to that in England.
Fracking involves using water injected at high pressure to fracture rocks, releasing oil and gas.
Yesterday the Holyrood government said it had enacted a ban in the face of ‘overwhelming’ public opposition.
Fracking has been banned in Scotland after 99 per cent voted No to the controversial method of extracting gas
Environmental groups praised the ban as protective of health and the environment.
But unions and business groups decried the decision as hypocritical given that gas that has been fracked is imported into Scotland from ‘Donald Trump’s America’.
In addition a fracking ban and will threaten the creation of jobs.
The move comes almost exactly a year that the UK government gave the go ahead to fracking in Lancashire.
Shale gas is currently processed in Scotland at a site in Grangemouth, after having been imported from abroad, but cannot be extracted from beneath Scottish soil under the current moratorium.
Scots Energy Minister Paul Wheelhouse said an immediate ban would be enacted by using planning powers to extend the current moratorium ‘indefinitely’, removing the need for legislation.
The decision comes almost exactly a year after the government gave the go-ahead to frack in Lancashire
Mr Wheelhouse told MSPs: ‘Let me be clear that the action is sufficient to effectively ban the development of unconventional oil and gas extraction in Scotland.
‘The decision that I am announcing today means that fracking cannot, and will not take place in Scotland.”
The minister said a public consultation on the issue received more than 60,000 responses, an ‘overwhelming” 99% of which were opposed to fracking’.
Conservative MSP Dean Lockhart said the decision meant Scotland’s economy was being ‘left behind’ and that reports had shown fracking could bring up to £4.6 billion in additional GVA and thousands of jobs.
He said: ‘This much-needed economic boost and these jobs will now be created outside of Scotland, thanks to the SNP.’
Paul Wheelhouse said an immediate ban on the controversial method would be enacted in Scotland
Friends of the Earth Scotland head of campaigns Mary Church said: ‘This is a huge win for the anti-fracking movement, particularly for those on the frontline of this dirty industry here in Scotland, who have been working for a ban these last six years.’
She said the ban would ‘avoid potentially devastating impacts to people’s health, the climate and our natural environment’.
Opponents of fracking claim that chemicals injected into the ground can end up in water supplies, that it can cause earth tremors, and that we should be focusing on renewable alternatives.
Gary Smith, the GMB union’s Scotland secretary, accused the Scottish Government of being ‘dishonest and hypocritical’, adding: ‘Scotland is importing a huge amount of shale gas from Trump’s America.
‘If the government wants to be consistent, it will now ban shale gas imports, threatening a huge number of job losses.’
Ken Cronin, Chief Executive of UK Onshore Oil and Gas, said: ‘The Scottish Government ignores the advice of its own independent experts and prefers a future where gas will have to be imported with the damage that will do to the economy and the environment. It turns its back on job creation, skills development, an increase in tax receipts and investment in communities.’
He added: ‘This is a poor decision, ignoring Scotland’s rich heritage and expertise in oil and gas.’