Will Unconventional, Horizontal, Hydraulic Fracturing for Shale Gas Production Purposes Create Environmental Harm in the United Kingdom?

In April 2018 Cuadrilla Resources successfully drilled the UK’s firsthorizontal shale gas well in Lancashire. Whilst there is an abundanceof academic research on the environmental impacts of fracking(primarily in North America), there is no scholarship that specificallyconsiders what environmental harms may occur from fracking in aUK context. This thesis is therefore an important, original contributionto academic understanding and is presented at a vital time in thedevelopment of fracking in the UK where production of shale gas isimminent.In order to assess the potential for environmental harm, 20 semistructuredinterviews were conducted with a variety of key-informants(people possessing important expertise of one or more areas of thefracking process in the UK). These key-informants came from avariety of backgrounds and included: 5 Anti-Fracking Campaigners; 3Academics; 3 Employees from Regulatory Bodies; 2 GeologicalConsultants; 1 Journalist; 1 Parish Councillor; 1 District Councillor; 1Water Consultant; 1 Oil and Gas Professional; 1 Oil and GasConsultant; and 1 Gas Company Director. Interview questions werederived from a literature review that revealed different opportunitiesfor environmental harm to occur based on a variety of academic andorganisational research. As a result, interview questions centred onwater (specifically; water aquifers, water resources, and wastewater)and other aspects (seismicity, chemical usage, well integrity andflaring).Treadmill of Production and eco-philosophy were used as theoreticalunderpinnings of the research. Treadmill of Production provides anunderstanding of why fracking has emerged in the UK, concludingthat the demise of North Sea oil and gas is leading to the increasedattractiveness of more extreme energy sources in order to keep thetreadmill running. The harms identified in the results chapters areforms of ecological withdraws and additions that lead to ecological disorganisation. Additionally, eco-philosophy provides three differentperspectives from which to view human interactions with shale gasresources. The conclusion is that fracking clearly represents ananthropocentric approach to the creation of energy where humanwants and needs are prioritised over the survival demands ofhumans, non-human species and the wider ecology.The thesis is best situated within the discipline of green criminologydue to the fact that fracking is a legal production process in the UK. Itis suggested that green criminology is in a unique position toevaluate fracking, and that this is not possible in orthodoxcriminological discussions that view crimes solely as violations ofcriminal laws.By conducting primary research prior to the development of frackingin the UK, this research has identified key areas for environmentalharm to occur based on the expertise of a variety of key-informants.This is the first piece of research of its kind and it is argued thatanalysing the potential for environmental harm to occur prior to theproduction of shale gas is more beneficial that analysingenvironmental degradations after they have already occurredaccording to the precautionary principle of environmental law