Scotland has imposed a moratorium on shale gas planning permits while an assessment on the impact of shale drilling is completed, ministers told the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday.
Energy Minister Fergus Ewing told Holyrood MSPs that an investigation into the effects of fracking for shale on public health and the environment had been launched and they would not be issuing any permits until its completion.
“We are imposing a moratorium on granting planning consents,” the minister, a member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), said.
While there are no current plans to extract shale in Scotland, the moratorium also means none will be approved until it is lifted.
Scotland is estimated to have reserves of around 80 trillion cubic meters of shale gas, which would be enough to provide Britain with gas for more than 30 years.
The Scottish moratorium comes only days after some English MPs attempted to impose a similar measure in the House of Commons.
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