'Historic' Vote As Wales Joins Scotland in Saying No to Fracking
'This is a clear statement that we want a frack-free Wales,' says Welsh official.
Just one week after Scotland announced its moratorium on fracking, the Welsh government voted on Wednesday to block the toxic method of shale gas extraction until it is proven safe from environmental and public health standpoints.
The Plaid Cymru political party's motion calls for control over fracking to be fully devolved from Westminster--seat of the U.K. government--to the National Assembly for Wales. In addition, it "calls on the Welsh Government to do everything within its power to prevent fracking from taking place in Wales until it is proven to be safe in both an environmental and public health context."
"The Westminster Government needs to catch up with Scotland, Wales, and many other areas of the world and bring in a moratorium on controversial fracking."
--Donna Hume, Friends of the Earth
In advance of the vote, the Welsh government had confirmed it would support the opposition party's motion.
"It's a historic day," North Wales assembly member Llyr Gruffyd, of the Plaid Cymru party. "This is a clear statement from the National Assembly for Wales that we want a frack-free Wales."
Friends of the Earth UK has noted that fracking increases greenhouse gas emissions, risks environmental damage, and won't create the jobs in Wales that the industry promises.
Gareth Clubb, director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, said he was "delighted" by Wednesday's news. "We look forward to the Welsh government using all the powers it currently has under planning and environmental permitting to make sure that unconventional gas extraction does not take place in Wales," he said.
Last week, a Welsh official from Swansea called on the Council of Europe to support a moratorium on fracking across the continent.
"The world stands on the brink of environmental catastrophe," said Geraint Davies, Labor MP for Swansea West. "If just one fifth of the available fossil fuels is burnt, global temperatures will grow beyond the two degrees tipping point that could send the world into irreversible climate change, with storms, floods, tidal waves, major disruption to our future food and water supplies, forced migration and conflict as growing populations are displaced and compete for scarce resources."
"Yet the dash for shale gas continues, egged on by a hunger from austerity provoked by a financial crisis caused by the irresponsibility of unregulated bankers," he continued.
Davies added: "In the United States, President Bush's exclusion of fracking from the clean air and water regulations allowed the industry to power forward without counting the environmental costs, which might turn out to be astronomical."
Despite widespread public opposition to the practice, and evidence that fracking is incompatible with national climate change targets, the U.K. failed last month to pass a nationwide moratorium.
"The Westminster Government needs to catch up with Scotland, Wales and many other areas of the world and bring in a moratorium on controversial fracking," Friends of the Earth's energy campaigner Donna Hume said following Wednesday's vote. "Fracking in the U.K. is looking increasingly like a lame duck. It's time the Government stopped trying to get this damaging and unpopular industry off the ground and started prioritizing energy efficiency and renewable energy."
A Guardian analysis published Monday shows that, thanks to concessions made by U.K. ministers during last month's debate, fracking is set to be banned on two-fifths of the land in England being offered for shale gas exploration by the government.
"The shale industry's seemingly irresistible advance is now looking more and more resistible every day," Louise Hutchins of Greenpeace U.K. told the Guardian. "Unless ministers can explain why fracking is too risky for the South Downs but perfectly safe in the Lancashire countryside, the next obvious step is to ban this controversial technique from the whole of the UK."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Just one week after Scotland announced its moratorium on fracking, the Welsh government voted on Wednesday to block the toxic method of shale gas extraction until it is proven safe from environmental and public health standpoints.
The Plaid Cymru political party's motion calls for control over fracking to be fully devolved from Westminster--seat of the U.K. government--to the National Assembly for Wales. In addition, it "calls on the Welsh Government to do everything within its power to prevent fracking from taking place in Wales until it is proven to be safe in both an environmental and public health context."
"The Westminster Government needs to catch up with Scotland, Wales, and many other areas of the world and bring in a moratorium on controversial fracking."
--Donna Hume, Friends of the Earth
In advance of the vote, the Welsh government had confirmed it would support the opposition party's motion.
"It's a historic day," North Wales assembly member Llyr Gruffyd, of the Plaid Cymru party. "This is a clear statement from the National Assembly for Wales that we want a frack-free Wales."
Friends of the Earth UK has noted that fracking increases greenhouse gas emissions, risks environmental damage, and won't create the jobs in Wales that the industry promises.
Gareth Clubb, director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, said he was "delighted" by Wednesday's news. "We look forward to the Welsh government using all the powers it currently has under planning and environmental permitting to make sure that unconventional gas extraction does not take place in Wales," he said.
Last week, a Welsh official from Swansea called on the Council of Europe to support a moratorium on fracking across the continent.
"The world stands on the brink of environmental catastrophe," said Geraint Davies, Labor MP for Swansea West. "If just one fifth of the available fossil fuels is burnt, global temperatures will grow beyond the two degrees tipping point that could send the world into irreversible climate change, with storms, floods, tidal waves, major disruption to our future food and water supplies, forced migration and conflict as growing populations are displaced and compete for scarce resources."
"Yet the dash for shale gas continues, egged on by a hunger from austerity provoked by a financial crisis caused by the irresponsibility of unregulated bankers," he continued.
Davies added: "In the United States, President Bush's exclusion of fracking from the clean air and water regulations allowed the industry to power forward without counting the environmental costs, which might turn out to be astronomical."
Despite widespread public opposition to the practice, and evidence that fracking is incompatible with national climate change targets, the U.K. failed last month to pass a nationwide moratorium.
"The Westminster Government needs to catch up with Scotland, Wales and many other areas of the world and bring in a moratorium on controversial fracking," Friends of the Earth's energy campaigner Donna Hume said following Wednesday's vote. "Fracking in the U.K. is looking increasingly like a lame duck. It's time the Government stopped trying to get this damaging and unpopular industry off the ground and started prioritizing energy efficiency and renewable energy."
A Guardian analysis published Monday shows that, thanks to concessions made by U.K. ministers during last month's debate, fracking is set to be banned on two-fifths of the land in England being offered for shale gas exploration by the government.
"The shale industry's seemingly irresistible advance is now looking more and more resistible every day," Louise Hutchins of Greenpeace U.K. told the Guardian. "Unless ministers can explain why fracking is too risky for the South Downs but perfectly safe in the Lancashire countryside, the next obvious step is to ban this controversial technique from the whole of the UK."
Just one week after Scotland announced its moratorium on fracking, the Welsh government voted on Wednesday to block the toxic method of shale gas extraction until it is proven safe from environmental and public health standpoints.
The Plaid Cymru political party's motion calls for control over fracking to be fully devolved from Westminster--seat of the U.K. government--to the National Assembly for Wales. In addition, it "calls on the Welsh Government to do everything within its power to prevent fracking from taking place in Wales until it is proven to be safe in both an environmental and public health context."
"The Westminster Government needs to catch up with Scotland, Wales, and many other areas of the world and bring in a moratorium on controversial fracking."
--Donna Hume, Friends of the Earth
In advance of the vote, the Welsh government had confirmed it would support the opposition party's motion.
"It's a historic day," North Wales assembly member Llyr Gruffyd, of the Plaid Cymru party. "This is a clear statement from the National Assembly for Wales that we want a frack-free Wales."
Friends of the Earth UK has noted that fracking increases greenhouse gas emissions, risks environmental damage, and won't create the jobs in Wales that the industry promises.
Gareth Clubb, director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, said he was "delighted" by Wednesday's news. "We look forward to the Welsh government using all the powers it currently has under planning and environmental permitting to make sure that unconventional gas extraction does not take place in Wales," he said.
Last week, a Welsh official from Swansea called on the Council of Europe to support a moratorium on fracking across the continent.
"The world stands on the brink of environmental catastrophe," said Geraint Davies, Labor MP for Swansea West. "If just one fifth of the available fossil fuels is burnt, global temperatures will grow beyond the two degrees tipping point that could send the world into irreversible climate change, with storms, floods, tidal waves, major disruption to our future food and water supplies, forced migration and conflict as growing populations are displaced and compete for scarce resources."
"Yet the dash for shale gas continues, egged on by a hunger from austerity provoked by a financial crisis caused by the irresponsibility of unregulated bankers," he continued.
Davies added: "In the United States, President Bush's exclusion of fracking from the clean air and water regulations allowed the industry to power forward without counting the environmental costs, which might turn out to be astronomical."
Despite widespread public opposition to the practice, and evidence that fracking is incompatible with national climate change targets, the U.K. failed last month to pass a nationwide moratorium.
"The Westminster Government needs to catch up with Scotland, Wales and many other areas of the world and bring in a moratorium on controversial fracking," Friends of the Earth's energy campaigner Donna Hume said following Wednesday's vote. "Fracking in the U.K. is looking increasingly like a lame duck. It's time the Government stopped trying to get this damaging and unpopular industry off the ground and started prioritizing energy efficiency and renewable energy."
A Guardian analysis published Monday shows that, thanks to concessions made by U.K. ministers during last month's debate, fracking is set to be banned on two-fifths of the land in England being offered for shale gas exploration by the government.
"The shale industry's seemingly irresistible advance is now looking more and more resistible every day," Louise Hutchins of Greenpeace U.K. told the Guardian. "Unless ministers can explain why fracking is too risky for the South Downs but perfectly safe in the Lancashire countryside, the next obvious step is to ban this controversial technique from the whole of the UK."