Fracking poses 'significant' risk to humans and should be temporarily banned across EU, says new report
A major scientific study says the process uses toxic and carcinogenic chemicals and that an EU-wide ban should be issued until safeguards are in place

A major new scientific study has concluded that the controversial gas extraction technique known as fracking poses a āsignificantā risk to human health and British wildlife, and that an EU-wide moratorium should be implemented until widespread regulatory reform is undertaken.
The damning report by the CHEM Trust, the British charity that investigates the harm chemicals cause humans and wildlife, highlights serious shortcomings in the UKās regulatory regime, which the report says will only get worse as the Government makes further budget cuts.
It also warns of severe risks to human health if the new Conservative government tries to fast-track fracking of shale gas across the UK. The āscale of commercial frackingā unleashed by the Governmentās eagerness to exploit the technique āshould not be underestimatedā, it cautions.
The report is due to be published tomorrow ā in the week that Lancashire county council votes on two highly contentious planning applications to frack in the county by the company Cuadrilla. If approved, they will be the first commercial fracking sites in the UK.
Last week, council planning officers recommended approval of fracking at one site, Preston New Road, but opposed a second site, Roseacre Wood, but only on traffic concerns, not pollution from fracking itself.
The charity says it will send copies of the report to the Lancashire councillors before they vote.
Late last year, New York became the first US state with significant shale gas reserves to ban fracking for health reasons. Howard Zucker, New Yorkās acting health commissioner, said he had identified āsignificantā public health risks and the stateās governor, Andrew Cuomo, compared fracking to passive smoking, a practice that wasnāt understood as a health risk for many years.
The CHEM Trust report also focuses on the potential health effects of the hundreds of chemicals, along with sand and water, that fracking companies use to prise open rocks. It warns of āsignificantā pollution to air, groundwater and surface waters and threats to wildlife.
Some of these toxic chemicals have been linked to breast, prostate and testicular cancer in humans as well as coronary heart disease, the report says. It outlines how 38 fracking chemicals are āacutely toxic for humansā and a further 20 are mutagenic, or known or possible carcinogens.
The report gives specific examples of hazardous materials used in fracking, including chemicals āassociated with leukaemia in humansā and ātoxic to sperm production in malesā. The trust warns it is āparticularly concerned about the use of hormone-disrupting chemicalsā.
It is also asking for full disclosure of the chemicals that will be used in the fracking process. Many of the chemicals used in the process remain secret. In the US, nearly 300 products used in fracking fluids contain at least one secret chemical.
The report warns of concerns about āthe current regulation of frackingā in the UK, which has āweak pointsā. Since the passage of the Infrastructure Bill last year, āit is no longer clear how well groundwaters will be protectedā. It is particularly concerned that āongoing cuts in regulatory authoritiesā will only make matters worse, especially any cuts to the regulator, the Environment Agency, which lost 15 per cent of its staff last year.
Specific issues about fracking in Lancashire are raised, including the suggestion that fracking could harm wildlife in the Wyre estuary, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, home to 11 wading bird species of international importance and three of national importance, as well as important orchids and insects. āThere is clear potential for fracking to cause serious pollution incidents with major impacts on the UK especially areas of recognised wildlife interestā the study concludes.
The report makes numerous recommendations to protect health, groundwater and the British countryside. These include no fracking operations near drinking water aquifers, the undertaking of environmental impact assessments for all fracking sites, and effective monitoring even after fracking operations have stopped.
Dr Michael Warhurst, the executive director of CHEM Trust, said: āOur investigation has identified key problems with the way fracking is regulated and monitored. Given the potential for pollution and damage to ecosystems, CHEM Trust is calling for a moratorium on fracking in Europe until our recommendations are in placeā.
A spokesperson for the Environment Agency said: āWe take the environmental risks associated with oil and gas exploration and production very seriously, including hydraulic fracturing for shale gas, and are committed to ensuring that people and the environment are protected.
āOur regulatory controls are in place to protect people and the environment.ā
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