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Fracking 'threatens God's glorious creation'
The Church of England has told parishioners that fracking causes environmental problems and risks lasting harm to “God’s glorious creation”.
The Cuadrilla Resources site in Lancashire Photo: PA
By James Kirkup, Deputy Political Editor
9:00PM BST 13 Aug 2013
The warning has been issued to Anglicans in Lancashire, where significant work to extract gas and oil by fracking has been proposed.
The Diocese of Blackburn has published a leaflet for its flock, telling them that for Christians, fracking presents “a choice between economic gain and a healthy environment.”
The church's decision to highlight potential downsides of fracking comes as Conservative ministers step up efforts to sell the technology to voters as an economic necessity.
Fracking, which involves fracturing rocks deep underground with water and chemicals to extract oil and natural gas, has sharply cut US energy bills and imports.
Ministers say it could do the same for Britain, but campaigners and local residents are opposing fracking in several counties, warning that it does environmental harm.
The Church leaflet appears to endorse such concerns, saying: “Fracking causes a range of environmental problems.”
The leaflet does not explicitly commit the church to a clear position for or against fracking.
But its focus is on the potential for lasting environmental damage and urges believers to consider their Christian duty to act as "stewards of the earth".
It says: "The time we spend thinking, praying and acting now to protect our drinking water, and the rest of God’s glorious Creation cannot compare with the time succeeding generations could potentially spend trying to make good what will likely happen if we in the church remain uninformed and silent."
Fracking is untested and potentially harmful, the leaflet says: “A relatively new technique to extract natural gas from previously unreachable depths is prompting a rush to drill, despite virtually no history as to its environmental impact."
The leaflet does mention economic arguments for fracking, but hints that environmental concerns should trump the "temptation" to make such gains.
The prospect of profit from fracking “has lured landowners to sign or contemplate signing leases to drill on their land. This is one way they can retain their land and make money, and money in today’s world seems to count for more than environmental stability,” it says.
“The rush to benefit from the gas-drilling bonanza is an obvious temptation for many and this, of course, raises the question of how consideration for God the Creator enters into the decision-making process.”
A spokesman for Blackburn Diocese said that the leaflet was intended to inform parishioners about the complex issues involved in fracking, and not to persuade them to oppose the technology.
“Whilst the Church of England does not have an official line in any of these particular aspects of the debate, it, together with other faith communities, does have an obligation, under God, to bring a different perspective into the debate,” he said.
“This stems from a sincere conviction to take seriously the challenges of caring for God’s fragile creation. To that end, the church believes it has a responsibility to inform its parishioners of these theological and ethical perspectives to enable them to reflect and respond accordingly.”
David Cameron has pledged to make the case for fracking in all parts of the UK, but the cause has encountered resistance in Northern Ireland.
Mark Durkan, the environment minister in Belfast’s devolved administration, has said that the case for fracking has not yet been made.
Mr Durkan, who would have to approve any fracking project in Northern Ireland, said he was not yet convinced.
“I am not going to make any decision until all the facts and scientific evidence are established. To do otherwise would be reckless and irresponsible,” he said “Do we need to extract shale gas? Can it be done safely? Would it be done responsibly? These are the responsible questions. All facts are not in. The scientific evidence is far from being established.”
The Church of England has told parishioners that fracking causes environmental problems and risks lasting harm to “God’s glorious creation”.
The Cuadrilla Resources site in Lancashire Photo: PA
By James Kirkup, Deputy Political Editor
9:00PM BST 13 Aug 2013
The warning has been issued to Anglicans in Lancashire, where significant work to extract gas and oil by fracking has been proposed.
The Diocese of Blackburn has published a leaflet for its flock, telling them that for Christians, fracking presents “a choice between economic gain and a healthy environment.”
The church's decision to highlight potential downsides of fracking comes as Conservative ministers step up efforts to sell the technology to voters as an economic necessity.
Fracking, which involves fracturing rocks deep underground with water and chemicals to extract oil and natural gas, has sharply cut US energy bills and imports.
Ministers say it could do the same for Britain, but campaigners and local residents are opposing fracking in several counties, warning that it does environmental harm.
The Church leaflet appears to endorse such concerns, saying: “Fracking causes a range of environmental problems.”
The leaflet does not explicitly commit the church to a clear position for or against fracking.
But its focus is on the potential for lasting environmental damage and urges believers to consider their Christian duty to act as "stewards of the earth".
It says: "The time we spend thinking, praying and acting now to protect our drinking water, and the rest of God’s glorious Creation cannot compare with the time succeeding generations could potentially spend trying to make good what will likely happen if we in the church remain uninformed and silent."
Fracking is untested and potentially harmful, the leaflet says: “A relatively new technique to extract natural gas from previously unreachable depths is prompting a rush to drill, despite virtually no history as to its environmental impact."
The leaflet does mention economic arguments for fracking, but hints that environmental concerns should trump the "temptation" to make such gains.
The prospect of profit from fracking “has lured landowners to sign or contemplate signing leases to drill on their land. This is one way they can retain their land and make money, and money in today’s world seems to count for more than environmental stability,” it says.
“The rush to benefit from the gas-drilling bonanza is an obvious temptation for many and this, of course, raises the question of how consideration for God the Creator enters into the decision-making process.”
A spokesman for Blackburn Diocese said that the leaflet was intended to inform parishioners about the complex issues involved in fracking, and not to persuade them to oppose the technology.
“Whilst the Church of England does not have an official line in any of these particular aspects of the debate, it, together with other faith communities, does have an obligation, under God, to bring a different perspective into the debate,” he said.
“This stems from a sincere conviction to take seriously the challenges of caring for God’s fragile creation. To that end, the church believes it has a responsibility to inform its parishioners of these theological and ethical perspectives to enable them to reflect and respond accordingly.”
David Cameron has pledged to make the case for fracking in all parts of the UK, but the cause has encountered resistance in Northern Ireland.
Mark Durkan, the environment minister in Belfast’s devolved administration, has said that the case for fracking has not yet been made.
Mr Durkan, who would have to approve any fracking project in Northern Ireland, said he was not yet convinced.
“I am not going to make any decision until all the facts and scientific evidence are established. To do otherwise would be reckless and irresponsible,” he said “Do we need to extract shale gas? Can it be done safely? Would it be done responsibly? These are the responsible questions. All facts are not in. The scientific evidence is far from being established.”
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