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2022-12-02

Opponents of fracking say it's 'too dangerous'.

The cold and miserable say 'do it - we're cold and winter is upon us'.

The government says 'we'll regulate it' ...

The people say 'you think we're going to trust you?!'.

Stymied!

And yet ...  nothing is without risk.

And I'd bet that there must be plenty of fracking projects that don't pollute.

So if mistrust in the government is the stumbling block, can we take them out of the equation?

Why should it be the government that regulates everything? Could not the local populace reach an agreement with the oil explorers concerning who would monitor and regulate their operations on a  project by project basis on behalf of the local people?

Perhaps the locals could even commission their own fracking company - after all, the big corporations also rely on the expertise of independent consultancy firms ...

Where there's a will there must be a way. Devolving decision-making to the lowest practicable level would allow people to address the specific local issues and get on with it, rather than eternally and fruitlessly arguing about the general principles. 

Yes, there are plenty of obstacles in the way of such an approach, but there are also many advantages, and we have to start somewhere.