The shale gas debate continues to drag on, its flames fanned by two reports released last week. University of Moncton biology professor, Louis LaPierre, and New Brunswick Chief Medical Health Officer, Dr. Eilish Cleary, have both released the results of thorough studies.
Even though it doesn’t support a moratorium on exploration, LaPierre’s report also doesn’t try to hide the fact that many New Brunswickers are vehemently opposed to shale gas development.
Matthew Hayes, a professor of sociology at St. Thomas University, believes change is coming from the bottom up.
“I think this is a longer-term phenomenon that is reshaping New Brunswick,” he said.
“As a result of ineffectual government in recent years, and a sense that certain decisions were being taken against the public interest, such as the sale of NB Power, a growing number of people have become skeptical of government authority.”
Cleary’s report raises serious problems for the Alward government, which originally refused to release it.
She outlines measures the government would have to take to ensure the safety of its citizens, including requiring companies to disclose all chemicals they use, preventing fracking in certain areas, and making sure the province can respond in an emergency.
Cleary said she doesn’t believe the province is ready to meet all her recommendations. The cost “will not be insubstantial,” she said
She concedes that if the industry was given the green light, some of the costs of monitoring health impacts could be mitigated by industry.
LaPierre’s report, which is the product of public forums held across the province, argues that it’s too early to take the axe to the shale gas industry. Doing so before any serious research could mean New Brunswickers missing out on a significant economic opportunity.
The report advocates hydro-fracking in a few select areas, and proposes its own series of safety recommendations.
Hydro-fracking is the process of pumping pressurized sand, water and chemicals into the earth. This breaks up shale rock and allows access to resources otherwise unreachable. The government and gas companies say the potential financial gains are enormous.
New Brunswick remains among the poorest provinces in the country, and there’s an argument that this can’t change if citizens keep rejecting economic development. But Hayes says shale gas is an unnecessary and ill-thought-out solution.
“On the employment issue, you have to ask yourself whether these are the jobs we want to create, whether they are long term, sustainable jobs, whether they create and sustain communities, or whether they would further fracture the social fabric of the province.”
