WIREDGOV

WWF recently reiterated a call for a moratorium on any shale gas activity in the UK following the publication of a report on methane and the greenhouse-gas footprint of natural gas from shale formations by academics at Cornell University. The report found that:

• The greenhouse gas footprint of shale gas is significantly larger than that from conventional gas
• The GHG footprint for shale gas is at least 20% greater than and perhaps more than twice as great as that for coal
• The greenhouse gas footprint of shale gas approaches or exceeds coal even when used to generate electricity

There are already widespread concerns about the local environmental impact of shale gas and according to Propublica, a US based independent journalism organisation, ‘more than 1,000 cases of contamination have been documented by courts and state and local governments in Colorado, New Mexico, Alabama, Ohio and Pennsylvania’1.

Now there is evidence suggesting that not only does shale gas pose a contamination risk, it also has a carbon footprint which is significantly worse than conventional gas and which is as bad or worse than coal2.

Jenny Banks, Climate and Energy Policy Officer at WWF-UK, said: “The government needs to take into account the findings of this report. It would be ridiculous for the UK to encourage shale gas when in reality its greenhouse gas footprint could be as bad as or worse than coal.

“If the government is serious about tackling climate change, then we need to reject this source of gas, and have a clear plan to move away from our dependency on fossil fuels and harness the full potential of renewable technologies.”

WWF recently gave evidence to the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee’s inquiry on shale gas, concluding that due to concerns over ground and surface water contamination attributed to shale gas drilling and greenhouse gas emissions, there should be a moratorium on shale gas production in the UK.

1. Lustgarten, Abrahm. November 13, 2008. ‘Buried Sectrits:Is Natural Gas Drilling Endangering U.S. Water Supplies?’ ProPublica

2. Cornell University report Methane and the greenhouse-gas footprint of natural
gas from shale formations: http://www.springerlink.com/content/e384226wr4160653/fulltext.pdf

3. WWF gave evidence to the Energy and Climate Change Committee’s enquiry into shale gas:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmselect/cmenergy/writev/shale/sg22.htm