Wide-scale fracking of shale gas is "not compatible" with the UK’s climate change targets unless tight standards pertaining to methane leaks, gas consumption and carbon budgets are met, according to analysis from the Committee on Climate Change (CCC).

The Committee’s report was prepared pursuant to requirements under the UK's 2015 Infrastructure Act. The legislation instructed the CCC, an independent statutory body, to advise the government on the implications of exploiting onshore petroleum, including shale gas, for meeting UK carbon budgets.

Emissions from shale gas production must be offset by emissions reductions in other areas of the economy to ensure UK carbon budgets are met, the CCC report says. Image credit: Pixabay.The CCC’s report finds that the implications of UK shale gas production for greenhouse gas emissions are subject to "considerable uncertainty"—from the size of any future industry to the potential emissions footprint from shale gas operations. It also finds that exploitation of shale gas on a significant scale "is not compatible" with UK carbon budgets, or the commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80% in 2050 from 1990 levels (as per the government's 2008 Climate Change Act), unless three tests are satisfied:

· Emissions must be strictly limited during shale gas development, production and well decommissioning. This requires tight regulation, close monitoring of emissions and rapid action to address methane leaks.
· Overall gas consumption must remain in line with UK carbon budgets. The production of UK shale gas must displace imports, rather than increase gas consumption.
· Emissions from shale gas production must be accommodated within UK carbon budgets. Emissions from shale exploitation will need to be offset by emissions reductions in other areas of the economy to ensure UK carbon budgets are met.

“Under best practice, UK shale gas may have a lower carbon footprint than much of the gas that we import," says CCC member Jim Skea, professor at Imperial College London's Faculty of Natural Sciences. "However, gas is a fossil fuel wherever it comes from and is not a low-carbon option, unless combined with carbon capture and storage."

"Existing uncertainties over the nature of the exploitable shale gas resource and the potential size of a UK industry make it impossible to know how difficult it will be to meet the tests," he says.