Written answers

Tuesday, 8 October 2013

Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources

Hydraulic Fracturing Policy

Photo of Robert DowdsRobert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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350. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in view of the fact that the agricultural and food sector is worth over €24 billion to Ireland's economy and in view of the widely documented detrimental effects of hydraulic fracturing or fracking seen in other countries, his views on the potential future ramifications of fracking on the Irish agricultural industry and Ireland's economy as a whole. [41969/13]

Photo of Robert DowdsRobert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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351. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in view of the importance of a clean and viable water supply to Ireland's environment and economy, and in view of the widely documented detrimental effects of hydraulic fracturing or fracking on water supplies seen in other countries, his views on the potential future ramifications of fracking with regard to the environment and Ireland's economy as a whole. [41970/13]

Photo of Robert DowdsRobert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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352. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in view of the value of the tourism sector to Ireland's economy and in view of the well documented detrimental effects of hydraulic fracturing or fracking on water supplies, health, landscape and ecology seen in other countries, his views on the potential future ramifications of fracking on the Irish tourism industry, Ireland's image as a tourist destination and Ireland's economy as a whole. [41971/13]

Photo of Robert DowdsRobert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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353. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in view of the highly toxic nature of many of the chemicals used in the hydraulic fracturing or fracking process which has been documented in other countries, and in view of the widely documented evidence of the migration of chemicals into local and national water supplies causing irreversible water contamination, his views on the potential future ramifications of fracking for the country's health. [41972/13]

Photo of Robert DowdsRobert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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356. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in view of the widely documented and detrimental effects of hydraulic fracturing or fracking seen in other countries on local and national water supplies, health, agriculture and environment including climate change, his views on the potentially catastrophic effects of fracking here. [41973/13]

Photo of Pat RabbittePat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 350 to 353, inclusive, and 356 together.

I would like to re-iterate, as I have done on a number of previous occasions, that any application for an exploration licence that proposed the use of hydraulic fracturing as part of an unconventional gas exploration programme would be subject to an environmental impact assessment.

To clarify, such an assessment would entail consideration of the potential impacts of the project on population (including community impacts and impacts on human health), fauna, flora, soil, water, air, climatic factors, material assets, including the architectural and archaeological heritage, landscape and the inter-relationship between the above factors. In other words, all of the potential environmental impacts of the proposed use of hydraulic fracturing would have to be assessed to ensure that there would be no significant environmental impact, prior to the grant of any permission for the use of this technology.

I have also made clear that such an environmental impact assessment would be informed by the findings of further research to be commissioned by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and that no decision would be made on any proposal for the use of hydraulic fracturing in exploration drilling in Ireland until there has been time to consider the outcome of this further EPA research.

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