Saturday 24 August 2013

Letter to the Prime Minister: Public disclosure on shale gas

Dear Mr. Cameron MP

So far there has been no production from hydraulically fractured shale gas wells in the UK. That will change in the next few years. I would strongly recommend that the UK government institutes an information website for the population of the UK to use. The website should include:

  1. Searchable well locations
  2. Well parameters (depth, geology, casing and cement plans, number of laterally and reach etc.)
  3. Pre-drilling ground and surface water test results, and air test results.
  4. Well integrity results.
  5. Post-drilling and post-fracking ground and surface water test results, and air test results.
  6. drilling and fracking fluid recipes and links to the materials data sheets for each component.
  7. Summary of microseismic monitoring of the fracking process.
  8. Summary inspection reports.
  9. Links to regulations, license applications and a guide to whether each well has fulfilled its regulatory requirements
 I feel strongly that, if shale gas is to be a success in the UK, it must happen in a transparent manner. Information will help build trust.

Some companies provide some of this information already, but it is important that the information is readlily available to all for the sake of transparency and due diligence. Fracfocus.org are developing something similar for the USA.

We have the potential of doing something better as we are at the start of our developments. It would be a way of letting the UK lead Europe in the responsible development of this important resource.

Yours sincerely,

Prof. Paul W.J. Glover

Professor of Petrophysics

University of Leeds, UK

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