The latest data from the Department for Energy and Climate Change’s public attitudes tracker has shown that the number of people who oppose hydraulic fracturing (fracking) has reached a record high, and the number who support it has dropped to record lows.
The public attitudes tracker is released every few months, tracking opinions on various aspects of the energy industry.
This latest data, from ‘Wave 17’, shows that the portion of people who either oppose or strongly oppose fracking has risen to a combined total of 31%, matching the previous record set in Wave 15. The percentage of those surveyed who said that they either support or strongly support the controversial technology has dropped to 19%, the lowest combined total since opinion on it started being tracked.
Support for fracking has been steadily falling for the past couple of years, according to the attitude tracker, while opposition has been steadily growing. The number of people surveyed who remain ambivalent (answering either that they ‘neither support nor oppose’ or simply ‘don’t know’ has remained fairly stable between 49 and 52% continuously, sitting at 50% as of this latest release.
This latest data will be unwelcome news for the government who have been trying to promote the use of the technology in order to fuel our domestic energy industry. Government support for fracking in the wake of reductions of subsidies for renewable technology like solar and wind has been widely criticised lately.
High-profile protests have been going on in Lancashire, where energy company Cuadrilla have been appealing to reverse a ban on fracking imposed by the local council following pressure from residents.
While the government have been arguing that much of the opposition to fracking is down to a lack of knowledge about its supposed benefits, those who oppose disagree.
Following the decision from Lancashire council, Labour council member Gail Hodson said, responding to accusations of ignorance: “We are not ‘nimbys’ and we are not people who haven’t done any research. I’ve spent five years on this case and the amount of information coming out of other countries means we cannot let this happen. There’s too much at stake.”
However, a spokesperson for the Department for Energy and Climate Change used the attitudes tracker’s data to argue the opposite.
He said: “These findings show that half of the people asked still don’t have a view on fracking, but more importantly that the vast majority (88%) said that they do not know a lot about it. This is exactly why we want people to have access to all the facts so they can see past the myths and understand the benefits which include greater energy security, more jobs and growth.”
The head of UKOOG, Ken Cronin, made a similar argument.
He said: “This research shows that two thirds of people are concerned that we cannot heat ourselves and keep the lights on, and nearly half are worried that we are too dependent on gas imports from abroad.
“The solution is to source energy from the ground beneath our feet and the industry must continue its efforts to ensure that factual evidence based information is provided to the public rather the scaremongering.”
UKOOG (United Kingdom Onshore Oil and Gas) is a trade body that represents companies in the fracking industry.
While both Cronin and the DECC spokesperson cited the 50% of people ambivalent towards fracking and the large number who feel uninformed, what they failed to mention was the vast (and growing) support for renewables that the data also showed.
81% of those surveyed said that they either support or strongly support renewable energy, and the government’s repeated cutting of subsidies has drawn criticism from various sources.
Juliet Davenport OBE, who runs energy provider Good Energy, referenced these figures.
She said: “The message from the British public is loud and clear. 81% of us back renewables for our energy – people want to see a transition to a renewable future here in the UK.”
Hugh McNeal, chief executive of Renewables UK, said: “It’s great that the British public sees how renewable energy is helping to grow the UK economy. Renewables are delivering investment and jobs throughout our country.”
There is no doubt that the government and the DECC in particular have their work cut out for them at the moment. There is pressure mounting from various angles: following the Paris climate agreement, there is a need to work towards optimistic carbon reduction targets but, at the same time, short-term energy security is becoming a growing concern. The latter is particularly important in light of the questionable future of EDF’s Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant. If it gets built, it will form a hugely important part of our domestic energy portfolio, but if it doesn’t, it will leave a gap that needs filling quickly.
