Dernier mot de 2012........

For those who have asked, we are still here - and won't be going away! The 7 permit applications including the one for Cahors appear to have been set aside for the moment pending either an eventual change of government here or the discovery of alternatives to hydraulic fracking ( all of which of course, would still utilize derricks, water, massive logistics and visual desecration and represent the continued use of a fossil fuel contributing not one jot to the inevitability of a move to renewables  ). Rest assured that the overall problem has not gone away.

The Commission of Enquiry set up by the Sarkozy government following the introduction of the loi Jacob banning hydraulic fracking and charged with finding alternative methods and the reform of the Code Minier recently came up with the bright idea of handing the responsibility for authorizing fracking to the maires of individual communes. Democratic on the face of it and of course  premised on the idea that politicians ( even local ones!) are not open to internal and external bribes! Neat one.

Two days ago, we noted the goodwill trip to Algeria by President Hollande. Now we hear that French oil and gas concerns are to be awarded contracts to explore fracking possibilities  there. No doubt this will be the chemically dirty version ( hydraulic ) using and then spoiling obscene amounts of water and not any of the new 'wonder solutions' being put forward by 'les petroliers'.

Here's wishing you a Happy Schistemas and Frack-Free 2013!

From all at Schistehappens.

Dirty money and disinformation........

We forgot to add that the sheer volume of pro-gas propaganda now being funneled via the French popular press is little short of obscene. To gain an insight simply enter 'Gaz de Schiste' in your Google.fr search box or in Google Actualities.

Hollande bursting to proceed............?

Whilst we have acknowledged the courageous step taken by President Hollande on 15th September to announce the annulation of the 7 existing permis applications we note that although we have sight of the official orders signed by ministers NOTHING has yet appeared in the JORF ( Journal Officiel Republique Fracaise ). The cancellations are therefore not yet definitive in law.

Holland has repeatedly said that there 'will be no fracking by hydraulique methods during his five years but that he remains open to other methods of exploitation if they can be found'. However,we consider that although the Commission of Enquiry, set to report at the end of 2013 ( when a parliamentary vote will be taken on their findings ) will do it's very best to come up with some other method and in any case, with the possible return of a UMP government in 2017 the problem could start all over again.

The simple fact is that although exploitation may assist the unemployment figures marginally by creating thousands of temporary and very unhealthy jobs and create a degree of energy independence for France, Natural Gas is by no means a panacea and not likely to be the saviour of the French economy as has recently been suggested by the likes of Claude Allègre and Louis Gallois.

The fact remains that landscape will be desecrated, tourism decimated and  communities disrupted ( hundreds of truck movements in and out on minor rural roads ) as derricks and worse appear in highly inappropriate locations - whatever process is eventually deployed.

Simply a matter of time and especially in the light of the millions of Euros currently being pumped into Brussels by industry lobbyists. Nonetheless, we think that in the final analysis, 'les petroliers'' will not find France to be the most amenable of operating theatres.

Simply a matter of time.

Not a sausage at this point...............

Just to emphasize that at the time of writing (01/10/12) no announcement regarding President Hollande's promise to reject 7 Gaz de Schiste permits has yet appeared in the government's Journal Officiel. In other words, to date, nothing has happened.

We remain sceptical - very. Let's hope we are wrong.

Earthquakes - the reality.

Frequently we find ourselves in conversation with fracking deniers who seem certain that the fracking related earthquakes around the world ( some as high as 3.5 on the Richter scale ) are of no consequence. They also seem coincidentally, to be the same people who would not mind a 50m derrick in their back garden nor the noise from the horrendous logistics involved. Of course, they almost always turn out to be people who have not seen GASLAND or other documentaries either.

Here, for general consumption is some official data from the USA. If you read nothing else, do have a look at Fig.9 in the attached pdf document. Beggars belief. http://smu.edu/newsinfo/pdf-files/earthquake-study-10march2010.pdf
http://smu.edu/newsinfo/pdf-files/earthquake-study-10march2010.pdf

Lost in translation perhaps............?

Most of us have been quite clear that at the end of the Environmental Conference in Paris on the 15th of this month President Hollande clearly announced that he intended to cancel the 7 existing permit applications, including those for the Cahors area, from Messrs 3 Legs Resources and for Beaumont de Lomagne. However, our friends in the Isle of Man would appear not to have fully understood the announcement. We thought it was abundantly clear and widely reported in the press here and elsewhere. Here is an extract from their interim report at http://www.3legsresources.com. to be found under the 'media' section of the site.

Extract:

"Germany and France
Our southern German concessions fell due for renewal in the second quarter of the year and we have submitted applications for extensions. These applications are in process. Following the temporary suspension of the oil and gas licensing process in France, the outcome of our two licence applications in France remains unclear. We continue to monitor the situation."

We are clear in our own minds that President Hollande intends the cancellations to be other than 'temporary', at least for the duration of his presidency.

Other matters.

Five organisations met last week north of Cahors to formulate a series of letters to President Hollande congratulating him on his balanced approach to existing and renewable sources of energy. Organisations present included: lecercledegindou; schistehappens; Lot Nature Magazine and Culture Perigord......At the close of the meeting letters were agreed emphasizing amongst other thingsthe urgent need to place the annulations on the statute book.

We are concerned........................very.

Just in case any of us thought that the cancellation of 7 permits for shale gas exploitation by President Hollande were cause for celebration, at this point we are well aware that..................

a. The annulation of the 7 permits has yet to appear on the statute books or in the Journal Officiel.

b. President Holland has done nothing to legislate against the possibility of other, emerging techniques, nor strengthen the loi Jacob of July 2011 ( much diluted by President Sarkozy's government ).

c. He has not ( apparently ), acted to cancel the Commission of Enquiry set up by Nicolas Sarkozy to examine 'aspects of exploration' which is due to report finally by the end of 2013 whence there will be a parliamentary vote.

d. He has problem characters within his administration including the apologist Claude Allègre who is now agitating once more and has also been challenged by widely diverging groups including Total, the CGT ( Communist Party), National Chamber of Commerce and many more.

We are concerned - very, and trust that you will not only keep a regular eye on these pages but also send the links to our site to as many English-speaking friends and contacts as possible. Thank you.