UK-based Cuadrilla, engaged in exploring and developing shale gas in the country, said on Friday it had suspended fracking works at its Preston New Road site in Lancashire for 18 hours after detecting 0.76-magnitude seismic activity in the area.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th October, 2018) UK-based Cuadrilla, engaged in exploring and developing shale gas in the country, said on Friday it had suspended fracking works at its Preston New Road site in Lancashire for 18 hours after detecting 0.76-magnitude seismic activity in the area.
On October 15, Cuadrilla resumed fracking works at the site after a seven-year hiatus. The company had to suspend fracking operations on Tuesday after detecting a 0.4-magnitude seismic activity.
"A micro seismic event of 0.76ML (local magnitude) was detected just after 11.30am this morning [10:30 GMT] at Cuadrilla's shale gas exploration site in Preston New Road, Little Plumpton, Lancashire ... Work will now pause for at least 18 hours and is expected to recommence in the morning (Saturday, October 27, 2018)," the company said in a statement.
UK Oil and Gas Authority requires the companies to stop fracking in case of any seismic activity above 0.5 on the Richter magnitude scale. Activity below magnitude 0.5 requires them to proceed with caution.
Cuadrilla suspended its fracking works in the United Kingdom in 2011, admitting that its activity was likely to have caused two earthquakes outside Blackpool. In 2014, it applied for a permit to resume fracking with the Lancashire county council, which gave its consent despite public protests.
Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a technique for extracting shale gas and oil by injecting pressurized toxic liquid into the ground. Opponents of hydraulic fracturing argue the process poses numerous health, safety and environmental risks, including the potential for fracking fluids and waste to leak into water as well as seismic activity risks.
