I am very upset by reports that the fracking company Cuadrilla began operations in Lower Stumble, a mile south of the lovely village of Balcombe, West Sussex, last Friday, 2 August.

On Saturday I made my second trip to the campsite in Lower Stumble – my first journey was on 28 July. I felt compelled to lend my support after I received Twitter requests from concerned residents asking me to help them in their struggle against Cuadrilla. I decided it was important to visit Balcombe because I believe that hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, is a high-risk process that poses serious threats to the environment, which in the rush to drill are being swept aside by Cuadrilla and the British government. Ironically, Lord Browne, chairman of Cuadrilla and former BP boss, is an adviser to the British government. I fear that if Cuadrilla is allowed to go ahead unchallenged it will forever alter England's glorious countryside.

Earlier on Saturday, around 125 Balcombe residents walked down to the drill-site from the centre of Balcombe. They started on the Balcombe recreation ground at about 11am, and walked down public footpaths through the village, through woodland and farmland, over the main London to Brighton rail line and down the B2036, to the site. The residents gathered support along the way, as others came to join them. By the time they arrived at the camp, the group had grown to around 200 Balcombe residents; elderly people, families with young children, some in pushchairs – quite a few of them had never been to the site before. The residents wanted to thank the protesters and get their views across to the media and people throughout the country that they want their land to remain frack-free.

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a technique to extract shale gas from the earth by forcing water with added chemicals into the rock under high pressure. The risks of fracking are well documented. The people of Balcombe fear that their drinking water could be contaminated, that the air they breathe could be polluted, and that the oil and gas companies will ruin the countryside with their drill-pads. There is also a fear that, because of the earthquakes Cuadrilla probably caused when they fracked in Lancashire, the same may happen in Balcombe. They are concerned about the economic consequences of fracking, which could see the value of their homes fall considerably, and make it difficult and more expensive to insure buildings in the area.

I support the people of Balcombe, not just in my capacity as founder and chair of the Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation and a committed environmentalist, but also because I love this country and would be devastated to witness the industrialisation of our countryside. As a mother and a grandmother I am deeply concerned about the impact that fracking will have on our environment, our water sources, air and way of life.

During both of my visits to the camp I met residents who fear seeing their countryside devastated, who cannot understand why the government has given permission to drill in Lower Stumble, even though the site is located in the High Weald, designated an "area of outstanding natural eauty". Residents are also very upset by the government's efforts to play down the environmental impact of fracking, despite the government being aware that loosening planning regulations for drilling could trigger a whole host of potential disasters including water and soil contamination, flooding, landslides, noise pollution, lung-threatening silica dust, traffic overload and visual intrusion into the landscape. The people of Balcombe are concerned about the impact fracking will have on the environment as well as the contamination and misuse of their local water sources.

Charles Metcalfe, one of the residents of Balcombe, told me:

"Even conventional drilling has dangers. There will be flares ... and with the prevailing wind blowing straight from the drilling site to the village, the aquifer supplying water to the Ardingly reservoir could be contaminated by the numerous acids they are using in the drilling, and also by any heavy metals and radioactive materials they will bring up. Our local reservoir is located less than a mile from the well-site, and is part of the supply system for 85,000 people. You have seen our lovely countryside, and understand why we want to prevent its industrialisation."



In January 2010 Cuadrilla successfully applied for planning permission to prospect for oil at Lower Stumble. The company received permission from West Sussex county council (WSCC) in April 2010 but the first some residents heard of it was from an article in the Independent newspaper in December 2011, entitled "Firm linked to quakes eyes Sussex drilling". After learning about the permit, Metcalfe contacted a member of Balcombe parish council, Rodney Saunders, who said he knew nothing about it either. Metcalfe also told me that after further investigation it was discovered that the parish council never considered the planning application sent by WSCC, so permission went through without objections.

Hydraulic fracturing is not a panacea as the proponents of fracking would have us believe. Their claims that fracking will be good for the country, achieve energy independence, create jobs and bring down the price of fossil fuels are false. In April 2011 George Osborne's plan to deliver cheap energy to the country was dealt a severe blow when a cross-party group of experts chaired by former energy minister Charles Hendry released a nine-month inquiry report which stated that any boom in shale gas production would be "unlikely to give the UK cheap gas".

There is plenty of disturbing scientific evidence available about the contamination of local water supplies. According to Professor Tony Ingraffea, professor of engineering at Cornell University and president of Physicians, Scientists and Engineers for Healthy Energy, fracking can cause methane leaks from inadequately encased wellbores, leading to the contamination of groundwater and aquifers. In another study, concentrations of methane – a greenhouse gas 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide – were found to be 17 times higher in drinking-water wells near fracturing sites than in normal wells. Some of you may have seen Josh Fox's Oscar-nominated film Gasland, which shows flames leaping out of open taps in areas where fracking has tainted the water supplies with methane and other contaminants.

Cuadrilla's plan is to drill a 3,000ft vertical well in Lower Stumble for oil exploration. The company has announced they will start by acid-etching a layer of micrite rock to determine if it's worth proceeding. This involves a cocktail of different toxic acids being pumped down at lower pressures than would be used in fracking. Cuadrilla has said the acids they will use are "non-hazardous". But would you want hydrochloric acid (the main acid to be used) coming out of your tap if there were a leak? Water is the most precious commodity we have on earth. It is what makes the earth habitable, and different from other planets. Without water, there would be no life. South-east England regularly suffers from water shortages. Cuadrilla should not be allowed to conduct operations that might compromise water purity, or use scarce water resources in operations that might have disastrous consequences.

Almost all Balcombe residents oppose the drilling and fracking – they are supported in their protests by environmentalists from Sussex, Lancashire and further afield. Over 30 protesters have so far been arrested for trying to prevent Cuadrilla's operations and deliveries.

Kathy Dunne, of resident's campaign group No Fracking in Balcombe Society (No FIBS), conducted a survey in the village: 85% of those who answered were against fracking, 9% were undecided and only 6% supported fracking. "We spoke to every household in the village," said Dunne, "and the overwhelming majority of people who live in Balcombe don't want fracking." It is a massive vote of no confidence by Balcombe inhabitants against this intrusive, hazardous technology.

I urge everyone concerned about the impact of fracking to join them in halting this dangerous process and preventing this fracking nightmare.