LOCAL Green Party leader Lyndsay McAteer is celebrating the news that the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) has told Cuadrilla to abandon the two wells at a site in Lancashire, which the company called the “only viable” ones remaining in Britain.
Lyndsay, Leader of Warrington & Halton Green Party and the Green Party’s Warrington North General Election candidate in 2019, celebrated the move, declaring it a win for the anti-fracking movement that she has personally protested with over the years.
She said “It is a win after all these years of protesting against fracking, and we are now heading in the right direction. I remember protesting on the picket lines at the Preston North Road site on numerous occasions. The wells will be capped with concrete but that doesn’t mean that they can’t uncap them in the future. We need to stay alert and make sure they stay capped forever.”
The government suspended all fracking activity in 2019 over earthquake fears. This came after an expert report said it was not possible to accurately predict the danger of earth tremors stemming from the controversial process for extracting gas. This led to further safety concerns.
Caroline Lucas MP (Green Party) tweeted “Cuadrilla abandons fracking in UK! Brilliant News & congratulations to all who’ve campaigned so hard for this. If Cuadrilla can see there’s no future in fracking, it’s madness that some Tory MPs still think it’s the answer to the gas crisis.”
Lyndsay added: “We need a local and a national focus on clean, green energy like wind, solar and tidal power, all of which are in abundance in Warrington.”
In addition, Lyndsay says Warrington Borough Council have learned to their cost that investment in energy companies like Together Energy can come with an unexpected cost of tens of millions of pounds, a disaster for Warrington and its residents.
“Such investments need to be preceded by a full risk transparent risk assessment conducted by a competent financial expert and must include an assessment of market forces over time.”
She said that the energy company’s apology is little compensation for the angst and loss of money that has resulted, which will no doubt have a major knock-on effect on already struggling public services like buses, hospitals and social care in the town as it recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.
She says the Warrington & Halton Green Party is continually holding Warrington Borough Council to account for its failings, and will always push for social, environmental and economic justice.
