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Measures & Solutions Since 2011, the issue has been debated in the Parliament, in the Commission and in the Council. A number of different studies and reports as well as a public consultation, which closed in March 2013, have been conducted. Furthermore, resolutions adopted and the creation of a Technical Working Group endorsed. It has been announced that the Commission intends to present a proposal on shale gas, by creating new legislation or by amending existing regulation , later this year. One concrete approach is amending existing legislation so as to require environmental impact studies for nonconventional hydrocarbon exploration and extraction projects. However, the vote about this proposal was postponed on 11th of September 2013 . Other suggestions include measures to inform and educate the public about fracking, diversify European energy production to enhance synergies, limiting risks by regulation regarding the safety and security of wells, amending the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive, the Liability Directive , the Directive on the Management of waste from extractive industries or the Water Framework Directive. While not directly linked to the extraction of shale gas, the Conclusions of the European Council of May 22 2013 include statements relevant to the topic.
Relevant Questions: How should the EU regulate hydraulic fracturing? Through which type of legislation? What is the public opinion about fracking and how should this issue be addressed? In your opinion, is fracking the future?
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Obligatory Resources:
Story: Can Europe join the Shale Gas Revolution?, Video by ViEUws: http://www.vieuws.eu/energy/story-can-europe-jointhe-shale-gas-revolution/ European Parliament resolution of November 2012 on the environmental impacts of shale gas and shale oil extraction activities: http://w w w.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc. d o ? p u b R e f = - / / E P / / T E XT + TA + P 7 - TA- 2 0 1 2 0443+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN European Parliament resolution of November 2012 on industrial, energy and other aspects of shale gas and oil: http://w w w.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc. d o ? p u b R e f = - / / E P / / T E XT + TA + P 7 - TA- 2 0 1 2 0444+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN
Conclusion
In order to be able to address the question of fracking, it is essential to first have a concrete idea of the risks that the extraction of shale gas would imply. It is also crucial to be able to estimate whether it would be a step forward in the direction of a greener energy grid or a step backwards. The potential impact of fracking in Europe on the climate and more specifically on water consumption and emission of greenhouse gases needs to be assessed. Also, the economic profitability of non-conventional gas extraction in Europe and the potential effects on the EU energy market must be estimated as precisely as possible. Therefore, the benefits and potential consequences must be assed before it can be discussed which of the two outweighs the other. Tough it is certain that the EU Commission will issue legislation in the next few months, the stance the EU will take with this policy on shale gas is not clear yet and therefore still in the midst of the debate.
Key Terms Fracking, Hydraulic fracturing, Shale gas, Conventional and unconventional or non-conventional gas, Fracking fluid. [20] Vieuws, Can Europe join the shale gas revolution, Video, http:// www.vieuws.eu/energy/story-can-europe-join-the-shale-gas-revolution/ and Joen Hennon speaks on shale gas, http://www.vieuws.eu/energy/joe-hennon-eu-commission-environment-spokesman-on-shale-gas/ [21] European Parliament, News, “Shale gas impact studies postponed�, http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/ content/20130906IPR18833/html/Shale-gas-environmental-impactstudies-vote-postponed [22] Eurlex, Directive on Safety of offshore oil and gas operations, http:// eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2013:178:0066:0 106:EN:PDF [23] European Union, Legislation summary, Waste management, http:// europa.eu/legislation_summaries/environment/waste_management/ l28134_en.htm [24] as laid out in the EU 2020 Strategy, the Green Paper, the 2030 framework for climate and energy policies, and the Roadmap 2050.