‘Striking oil’ is a saying we all associate with getting rich. Discovering gas off the coast has given a degree of energy-independence to the country and a slightly cleaner fuel. Newer technology has allowed us to tap into previously uncommercialised resources. On the face of it, there should have been wild celebrations in the area around Leitrim with the discovery of so-called “shale gas”. The trouble was that the technology used to extract the gas involved hydraulic fracturing, otherwise known as fracking. It involves pumping water into a borehole at high pressure to physically crack the shale rock and release the gas.

It is human instinct to be frightened about something different. However, it is a process fraught with dangers in an area like Leitrim, with farming and tourism totally dependent on clean water. Personally I believe the risks are too high, and not just in that immediate area. We are a small country and if a foreign customer for our food hears of a problem in Ireland then it doesn’t matter if it is Leitrim or west Cork.

Research

Economically I also believe the fracking technology has been overtaken by more climate-smart renewables like wind, solar, AED and locally grown biomass.

Strange as it may seem though, I am not jumping up and down with excitement following the Dail’s surprise passing of the first stages of a bill to ban fracking.

That’s despite my thinking that fracking is becoming out-dated and could do irreparable harm. But that’s just my opinion. I’m just a farmer, so I couldn’t possibly understand oil and gas exploration. It could be perfectly safe.

Rather than taking the easy knee-jerk option the government had told the EPA to research the implications of fracking on the environment in an Irish context. Various companies and the University of Aberdeen were contracted to examine all sides over a two year period. Results are due in a few months. The logical response was that the Government had funded an EPA study and there is a moratorium on any decision in the meantime.

As a farmer I face a multitude of regulation, where the only hope I have to keep my farm reasonably workable is to have everything based on science. Climate Change is scientifically proven but most international plans to date are still based on politics and educated guesswork. The national environmental groups currently celebrating the fracking bill are also looking to reduce cattle numbers and stop us exporting high-value food from the country.

What’s the next popular or emotional decision our current Government is going to take? Water meters are probably first on the list. Maybe a ban on wind turbines, or slurry spreading in the summer?

Let’s not forget that the only reason farmers in Europe are currently allowed to use glyphosate is because the EU Commission decided to allow an already fully funded scientific study to be completed.

I just hope that the Oireachtas Committee that will be debating the fracking bill will have the sense to wait for the EPA study results before any decision is made. Otherwise, I seriously worry what uninformed decision we will have to deal with next.

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