Secretary of State, Edward Davey, today made the case for the exploration of shale gas in the UK, in line with the nation's climate change targets.
In a speech to the Royal Society, Mr Davey said that if shale gas could be developed in an economically viable and environmentally friendly way, it would benefit the UK – increasing energy security while providing more jobs and tax revenues.
The minister was responding to the findings of a new report which estimates that the carbon footprint of UK produced shale gas would likely be significantly less than coal and also lower than imported Liquefied Natural Gas.
The report by Department of Energy & Climate Change chief scientific advisor, Professor David Mackay FRS, and Dr Timothy Stone, senior advisor to the secretary of state, assesses the potential greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the production of shale gas in the UK and concludes that with the right safeguards in place, they will be relatively small.
Speaking at the Royal Society, Mr Davey said: "Gas, as the cleanest fossil fuel, is part of the answer to climate change, as a bridge in our transition to a green future, especially in our move away from coal.
"We have to face it: North Sea gas production is falling and we are become increasingly reliant on gas imports. So UK shale gas could increase our energy security by cutting those imports.