Loss or destruction of the natural environment is most common concern for people opposed to hydraulic fracturing, long-running government poll finds

Opposition to fracking continues to outstrip support - particularly among those who know about the controversial process, a survey for the government shows.

More than half (53%) of those who said they knew a lot about fracking were against it, compared to a third (33%) who said they were in favour of it, the latest poll tracking attitudes to energy policies has revealed.

Among those who thought they knew a little about it, opposition outstripped support by 40% to 26%, the survey for the Department of Energy and Climate Change found.

Opposition was also higher than support among all those who were quizzed for the survey, with 29% opposed and 23% backing extraction of shale gas through fracking. Women were more likely to be opposed to it than men, with only 17% backing fracking, compared to 28% of men.

The weak support for shale gas is in contrast to the backing the public shows for renewables, which have faced cuts in government support, with 78% in favour of technologies such as wind power, solar and biomass, and only 4% against.

The latest findings of the public attitudes tracker come as the government continues its push to develop a shale industry in the UK, with decisions on schemes being taking out of council hands in the face of strong local opposition.

For the first time, the 2,121 households were asked why they supported or opposed fracking. Of those who were against the process, the most common concern was the loss or destruction of the natural environment, with 61% giving it as a reason.

UK ministers make it 'top priority' to ensure nature laws do not hamper fracking Read more

Among those supporting fracking, the main reasons cited were needing to use all available energy sources (35%), reducing dependence on conventional fossil fuels (34%), and reducing dependence on getting supplies from other countries (32%).

The survey also revealed that 36% of people support nuclear power, while 21% oppose the technology.



Hydraulic fracturing - or fracking - involves pumping water, chemicals and sand at high pressure underground to fracture shale rock and release the gas trapped in it.

Greenpeace UK chief scientist Dr Doug Parr said: “If you take a UK ranking of energy sources by popularity and turn it upside down, you have a list of this government’s energy priorities. There’s a growing gulf between what the public wants for our energy future and what our ministers are imposing, and the cheaper clean technologies become, the wider the chasm will grow.”

A Decc spokesman said: “There is no question that we need natural gas in the UK, and this research shows that people do not want to rely on other countries for it. That is why we need to secure our own domestic gas supplies. If just 10% of the estimated gas in shale rock could be recovered, it would be enough to meet our energy demand for almost 40 years.”





