[Church of England press release] The Chair of the Church of England’s group on Mission and Public Affairs Philip Fletcher has today (16th August 2013) issued the following statement placing recent media reports in context:

“The Church of England has no official policy either for or against hydraulic fracturing (known as ‘fracking’). However there is a danger of viewing fracking through a single issue lens and ignoring the wider considerations.

“There are a number of balancing considerations which need to be taken into account when coming to a view. Fuel poverty is an increasingly urgent issue for many in society – the impact on energy bills is felt most by the least well off. Blanket opposition to further exploration for new sources of fuel fails to take into account those who suffer most when resources are scarce.

“I would want to emphasise along with all those that care for the environment the importance of proper controls in relation to any form of fracking – we do not want cowboys and cavaliers digging up the land in a free for all exploitation. However as the Royal Academy of Engineering concluded recently in a review on fracking, this is a procedure which “can be managed effectively in the UK as long as operational best practices are implemented and robustly enforced through regulation”.

“There are issues and risks. The answer to those is to treat them seriously and to minimise them. There are examples of how this can be done in other areas. The oil well operating at Brownsea Island demonstrates that oil production in a deeply sensitive area can continue for decades without endangering the environment.

“Clearly all carbon based fuels contribute to global warming and are less than ideal in terms of climate change. However, it should also be recognised that gas is less damaging than coal and to preclude properly managed technical development is to risk denying ourselves more important, less polluting and less costly options than the energy sources on which we currently rely.

“Fuel poverty, the creation of jobs, energy self-sufficiency and the development of technology that may reduce the impact of more polluting fuels are just some of the factors which need to be taken into account in any debate alongside the concern we all have about the impact of fossil fuels upon climate change.”