Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the witnesses for their attendance. I also thank them, as well as those in the Gallery, for their patience while waiting. If one is going to do something that is a risk, the first thing one has to do is ask whether it is necessary. If there is a pedestrian crossing where one can walk safely across the road, why would one go 20 yd. up the road to cross the road without a red light for traffic to stop? It seems as though the risks involved here are substantial. The witnesses have waited a long time and other people want to ask questions. There are huge risks involved, which is clear from the report and the Department's conclusions on it. A more comprehensive report on a seven-year study done in New York concluded that the administration should ban it completely. There are risks to the environment, air and water quality and Mr. Alan Hooper touched on some of those. The report that was done here did not deal with the effects of burning shale gas; it simply dealt with the extraction of shale gas. In this country, we are already way behind our international obligations in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Will the witnesses from the EPA share any thoughts they have about the effects of burning shale gas in terms of what effect it would have on our CO2 emissions and whether it would increase those or not?

The conclusions of the Department on its potential to pollute ground aquifers is of huge concern to people. I am from the midlands but I know there is huge concern about that in the north west. The potential for cracks has been outlined very vividly. There could be cracks of up to 500 m from hydraulic fracturing. The closing of wells was also addressed. We are doing a study in this country where it has not yet happened. Perhaps Mr. Alan Hooper will address this point. The studies in the United States addressed a situation where it has happened and where the environmental consequences can be seen, felt and measured. Does CDM Smith agree it is difficult to do it here because it has not happened here yet?

What is the impact of burning shale gas? Will it exacerbate the appalling situation in this State where we are far behind and will fall far short of the very modest targets we set ourselves to meet in 2020 and 2030? I cannot figure out why, as an island nation, we are even entertaining this because surely we have enough, in that we have an abundance of renewable sources of energy. The EPA has looked at all of this in the past, as I am sure have some of the people here with scientific backgrounds. We are only scratching the surface in terms of exploring and researching such sources and developing the technology to harvest wind, wave, solar and all the other bioenergies that are available and into which we should be tapping. Why we are even taking the risk of going down the road of shale gas is beyond me. Why cross the road 20 yd. from the pedestrian crossing when one can press the button and have a red light to stop traffic? It is beyond me why we are taking the risk.