Public Health England has carried out a review into the potential health risks from chemical and radiological pollutants from shale gas extraction processes. This review, published in October 2013, took account of available information published up to 2012. It is being updated to take account of new information.

The review was conducted in response to requests to provide specialist advice to those responsible for public health protection, including local authorities and regulators. The review concluded that the risks to public health from exposure to emissions from shale gas extraction are low if operations are properly run and regulated. In the UK, shale gas developers and operators will be required, through the planning and environmental permitting processes, to satisfy the relevant regulators that their proposals and operations will minimise the potential for pollution and risks to public health.

I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department of Health.

Public Health England (PHE) has considered the British Medical Journal (BMJ) editorial on Public Health England’s draft report on shale gas extraction: Mistaking best practices for actual practices, published on 17 April 2014. PHE’s response to the article was published online on 30 April 2014 and can be found at:

www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g2728?tab=responses

PHE’s response to the BMJ article states that the conclusion of the report that risks from the process of shale gas extraction will be low if operations are properly run and regulated was a considered judgment. PHE has

identified those aspects of operations that are considered to pose the greatest risks. PHE has made a number of recommendations for the control of risks, as have others. If shale gas extraction does take place, PHE will work with regulators to help ensure that environmental monitoring and health surveillance programmes are implemented appropriately. PHE agrees with Kovats et al^{(Lancet 383, 757-8; 2014) on the potential for health impact assessments (HIA) to play a role in informing policy and local planning processes, considering all issues associated with shale gas extraction which may affect health, including greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. PHE will seek to support HIAs and will continue to evaluate evidence on health risks associated with shale gas extraction and related technologies.}

Shale gas and oil operations involve hydraulic fracturing in wells drilled over a mile below the surface. At that depth it is highly unlikely that there will be any negative impact closer to the surface.

Like most other industrial activities, oil and gas operations require permission from landowners to access their land in order to reach mineral deposits.

Operators prefer where possible to agree this through negotiation with the landowner, but there is an existing legal route by which they can apply for access where this cannot be negotiated. In this respect, it is already possible for an operator to gain access to land for the extraction of oil or gas without a landowner’s permission through the courts.

The Government is considering whether these existing procedures used to obtain access are fit for purpose in relation to underground land. We have not yet made a decision on what actions we may take.

The UK Onshore Operators Group (UKOOG) has stated that £100,000 will go to the local community in respect of each hydraulically fracked

well site at exploration stage. UKOOG has further stated that the exact boundaries of the local community, for this purpose, will be defined on a site-by-site basis in conjunction with local people.

The Environment Agency will require full disclosure of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing.

Operators will not be able to use chemicals for well stimulation unless the agency considers them acceptable for use. The Environment Agency will assess the hazards presented by fracking fluid additives on a case-by-case basis.

Allowing the use of a chemical at one site does not automatically mean the agency will allow it to be used elsewhere. This is because the environmental risks may be different, for example, due to local geological conditions.

Ministers in the Department have met their ministerial counterparts from the Department of Energy in the United States of America on a number of occasions and have had wide-ranging discussions.

All meetings between external organisations and Ministers in the Department of Energy and Climate Change are published on a quarterly basis on the Department's website and are available for download at this link:

http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/accesstoinform/registers/registers.aspx

As has been the case with successive Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

The Environment Agency has set up a team of 10 national officers working full time to develop the regulatory regime for oil and gas activities. This work covers conventional and unconventional oil and gas activities.

This team is supported by additional technical resource from elsewhere in the organisation. The workload fluctuates and these specialists are not solely dedicated to regulating and permitting unconventional activities. It is therefore not possible to give an exact answer, but the agency estimates that approximately 40 further members of staff are currently involved in this work across England.

UK Government policy is to ensure the shale industry is able to develop in a safe, sustainable and environmentally responsible way within a well-regulated environment. Regulating the industry will remain a priority for the Environment Agency. Funding for setting up the regulatory regime comes from DEFRA grant in aid. Work to regulate individual sites is financed through the charges the Environment Agency raises for environmental permits and licences, supported where necessary by the grant in aid.

The Department has received a number of comments and has been made aware of recommendations by a variety of interested parties, including non-governmental organisations and members of the public, that are relevant to the UK’s shale gas regulatory regime. The UK has a strong regulatory system which provides a comprehensive and fit for purpose regime for exploratory activities, but we want continuously to improve it. The Office for Unconventional Gas and Oil (OUGO) works closely with regulators and others to ensure that regulation is also fit for purpose for production; and that it remains robust enough to safeguard public safety and protect the environment.

The Department is presently conducting a strategic environmental assessment (SEA) on further onshore licensing. The SEA consultation closed on 28 March. Some of the responses to this consultation are relevant to the UK’s shale gas regulatory regime. All responses will be carefully considered before any decision is made on further licensing.

The Environment Agency does not separately record the income it expects to raise from fracking firms. However, it does hold estimates of the charges it expects to raise from environmental permits and licences for the onshore oil and gas industry as a whole.

Over the next year, with the current charging scheme, the Environment Agency estimates income of between £300,000 and £350,000. This includes fees from permit applications and annual subsistence, for mining waste, groundwater, radioactive substances and water resources permits. It does not include any site surrender fees as no sites are expected to surrender their permits over the next year. As the onshore shale gas part of the industry grows over time, we would expect the income from permitting charges to change.

The Environment Agency has been regulating the existing onshore oil and gas industry for many years and has extensive experience and expertise in this area.

The Environment Agency has been developing its approach to the regulation of the unconventional oil and gas sector for more than two years. It uses its extensive knowledge of regulating the existing onshore oil and gas industry, and environmental regulation more generally, to regulate this emerging industry. The Agency has undertaken a full assessment of the risks and learnt from experience in other countries.

The Environment Agency regulates the management of waste, including fugitive emissions, under the Mining Waste Directive. Operators must develop and submit a Waste Management Plan with their permit application. They must set out how they will minimise waste and dispose of it safely. Environment Agency staff have extensive experience of regulating waste management activities at other sites, including the active management of landfill gas.

The Health and Safety Executive regulates the health and safety risks to people from oil and gas drilling.

The Environment Agency does not record separately the regulatory costs of hydraulic fracturing in England, For 2014-15 the Environment Agency has allocated £2.6 million to its work on regulating onshore oil and gas. This is 0.39% of the Environment Agency's total revenue budget.

Budgets for 2015-16 and 2016-17 have not yet been confirmed.

The Environment Agency has nine inspectors and two team leaders who have particular knowledge in onshore oil and gas production facilities in England. These inspectors form part of an Onshore Oil and Gas Sector Group. As and when hydraulic fracturing or other unconventional oil and gas extraction facilities become operational, the regulation of these sites will fall to this group. The membership of the group reflects the geographical distribution of the oil and gas extraction industry. If the industry expands, the size of the sector group will expand to reflect this.

Sites in Wales are regulated by Natural Resources Wales.

The Environment Agency does not need to give companies operating hydraulic fracturing sites in England any notice of inspections and can make unannounced visits.

Sites in Wales are regulated by Natural Resources Wales.

For surface installations required for borehole construction and hydraulic fracturing, the Environment Agency is a statutory adviser in the planning process. Where appropriate, it will require flood risk assessments. It may object to developments if flood risk is unacceptable or require conditions on how the site is constructed and operated to mitigate flood risk, through flood consents.

For surface installations required for borehole construction and hydraulic fracturing, the Environment Agency is a statutory adviser in the planning process. Where appropriate, it will require flood risk assessments. It may object to developments if flood risk is unacceptable or require conditions on how the site is constructed and operated to mitigate flood risk, through flood consents.