Should Fracking Be Used For Money For Traditional Sources...

This house believes that fracking should be used to compensate for traditional sources of fossil fuels in the UK in the next 40 years. I am arguing against this motion from a social and environmental angle. Introduction: In order to comply with the goal to cut traditional fossil fuel consumption by 2050, the UK needs to turn to alternative types of energy. Fracking is a method of extracting shale gas from deep within the earth’s surface, by injecting large quantities of water at very high pressures. This water is mixed with chemicals, in order to free the gas by breaking down the shale within sedimentary rocks (Goodwin 2014). These rocks are impermeable, the gas cannot flow through it, and so it needs extracting via fracking. Currently†¦show more content†¦Fracking shouldn’t be used to compensate for traditional sources of fossil fuels as the UK already undergoes water crisis during periods with little rainfall. As a result of global warming, less frequent but more intense precipitation events are expected to occur, preventing groundwater supplies recharging because once the ground becomes saturated no more water can penetrate. Using millions of gallons of water per well is lik ely to result in aquifer depletion, as the rate of precipitation and runoff cannot replace the groundwater supplies used in fracking (Finelka, 2013). This could cause a competition for water, with different resource users wanting supplies for what they deem most important (Homme, 2014). Fracking companies will want the water for shale gas extraction but farmers will want it for agriculture and homeowners for cooking and drinking. Using the water supplies for fracking isn’t right when water is a vital necessity for human survival, whether it is for crop growth or drinking. We need to prioritise our water usage, and using millions of gallons of water for shale gas extraction isn’t more important than basic necessities. Fracking supporters argue recycled wastewater or brackish water could be used rather than clean water, but this isn’t always available in the quantities needed and in 2011 this only counted for 1/5 of the water