Mod Weekender pictures, Brighton, August Bank Holiday weekend
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Monday, August 26, 2013
Mods and scooters - pictures of the Mod Weekender, Brighton, August Bank Holiday weekend 2013
Mod Weekender pictures, Brighton, August Bank Holiday weekend
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Sunday, August 18, 2013
Wingwalkers - daring girls on airplanes at Eastbourne air show
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Thursday, August 15, 2013
Fracking: Environment Agency 'altered wording' on advice about risks to drinking water in Sussex
The Government was told more than a year ago by the Environment Agency that fracking should not be allowed near aquifers - underground rocks that contain water - because the drinking supply in Sussex could be contaminated.
But the agency's head of climate change altered the wording on a public statement so it did not create "too stark a message", according to a story in the Brighton Argus.
The water near Balcombe is not suitable for drinking, but about 75 per cent of Sussex drinking water does come from underground supplies - precisely where there are huge deposits of shale gas and oil.
In a private memo to government, a senior EA official wrote that it would object to planning applications and refuse to grant an environmental permit if a company wanted to frack where aquifers are used to supply drinking water.
In one email, released after a request under the Freedom of Information Act, the official said: “Can I ask that you do not use the two sentences from … [redacted]..... while we finesse them.”
An EA spokesman told the Argus: “If the activity poses an unacceptable risk to the environment the activity will not be permitted.”
The good news, then, is that the EA would object; the bad news is that they tried to tone down the possible risks.
The toning down (or even up) of memos and reports is always fraught with danger. Weapons of Mass Destruction and Iraq springs to mind.
BRIGHTON ARGUS STORY - Secret emails reveal the risk to water in Sussex from fracking was known by officials
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But the agency's head of climate change altered the wording on a public statement so it did not create "too stark a message", according to a story in the Brighton Argus.
The water near Balcombe is not suitable for drinking, but about 75 per cent of Sussex drinking water does come from underground supplies - precisely where there are huge deposits of shale gas and oil.
In a private memo to government, a senior EA official wrote that it would object to planning applications and refuse to grant an environmental permit if a company wanted to frack where aquifers are used to supply drinking water.
In one email, released after a request under the Freedom of Information Act, the official said: “Can I ask that you do not use the two sentences from … [redacted]..... while we finesse them.”
An EA spokesman told the Argus: “If the activity poses an unacceptable risk to the environment the activity will not be permitted.”
The good news, then, is that the EA would object; the bad news is that they tried to tone down the possible risks.
The toning down (or even up) of memos and reports is always fraught with danger. Weapons of Mass Destruction and Iraq springs to mind.
BRIGHTON ARGUS STORY - Secret emails reveal the risk to water in Sussex from fracking was known by officials
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Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Fracking debate: oil production 'unlikely' at Balcombe, says Cuadrilla
Now Cuadrilla says oil production is unlikely at Balcombe.
All that fuss and policing costs for nothing?
Transport links at other sites are more suitable, apparently.
Beneath all the hype and emotions, isn't that what the people of Balcombe had said?
It's not been ruled out totally, though.
BBC STORY
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All that fuss and policing costs for nothing?
Transport links at other sites are more suitable, apparently.
Beneath all the hype and emotions, isn't that what the people of Balcombe had said?
It's not been ruled out totally, though.
BBC STORY
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Tuesday, August 13, 2013
It's oil, not gas, exploration at Balcombe
Everyone keeps talking about gas and Balcombe. The application to deal with NORM, which I read last night, says they are not expecting to find gas there. They are looking for oil!
Brighton Argus and PM's fracking message
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Brighton Argus and PM's fracking message
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'Radioactive substances' in Balcombe! The fracking debate as they search for oil in Sussex: is it safe?
My attention has been draw to a "permit application for a proposed radioactive substances activity" by the people exploring for oil at Balcombe, West Sussex.
What on earth is that all about? Radioactive substances? These are immediate, forgive the pun, reactions.
Cuadrilla Balcombe Limited is prospecting for oil that might be (is very likely!) trapped in the Weald Basin. This requires exploratory drilling at the site to "identify and quantify" its presence.
The company's operations do not include hydraulic fracturing - or fracking - of the rock. It is just (!) "a conventional oil well exploration activity".
Using data from a previous exploration at Balcombe (1986), Cuadrilla does not expect any gas - "although the possibility cannot be ruled out entirely" (its words).
The drilling process, like, I understand, all oil exploration or oil production, produces waste that, potentially, contains Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (NORM).
Cuadrilla needs to deal with this radioactive material - hence the application, made a month ago, to the Environment Agency for a permit.
However, specialists in the field, say: "Given the relatively low concentrations of NORM anticipated, operations are not expected to give rise to any significant contamination issues." Note the word "significant".
Water occurs naturally in geological formations and could be released during the testing phase to become liquid waste at the surface. After hydrocarbons are separated, this waste, which might contain radioactive material, will be stored in steel containers on the site.
The company's management plan then allows for the waste to accumulate in the tanks before being transported by road tanker to treatment plants in "an [sic] manner of preventing, and where that is not possible minimising, effects on people and the environment". Words that are more disturbing than comforting.
Based on the previous Balcombe drill-site data, it has been "estimated" that approximately 82 cubic metres of waste water will arrive at the surface. If they are wrong, a total storage of three times that amount has been allowed for.
If I understand the information correctly, this waste water, when eventually carried on the roads, is "out-of-scope of the Carriage of Dangerous Goods regulations" - meaning it is "considered a low risk of harm in transit".
It's a complicated subject to grasp immediately and we have to rely on experts. So, if the Environment Agency allows the application, I can only assume that Cuadrilla has presented a good case for its Best Available Technique (BAT) Statement - safety, monitoring, storage, transport, security, etc, are all there and, hopefully, meet the requirements. The closing date for comments on the application is tomorrow (August 13).
However, remember that this is just the EXPLORATION phase.
Before going any further, someone needs to explain, in simple terms, how much Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material might be unleashed on Balcombe during any fracking operations - SHOULD THESE BE ALLOWED.
In other words, convince me it is safe - before you try to convince me that we need industrial processes in the heart of the countryside.
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What on earth is that all about? Radioactive substances? These are immediate, forgive the pun, reactions.
Cuadrilla Balcombe Limited is prospecting for oil that might be (is very likely!) trapped in the Weald Basin. This requires exploratory drilling at the site to "identify and quantify" its presence.
The company's operations do not include hydraulic fracturing - or fracking - of the rock. It is just (!) "a conventional oil well exploration activity".
Using data from a previous exploration at Balcombe (1986), Cuadrilla does not expect any gas - "although the possibility cannot be ruled out entirely" (its words).
The drilling process, like, I understand, all oil exploration or oil production, produces waste that, potentially, contains Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (NORM).
Cuadrilla needs to deal with this radioactive material - hence the application, made a month ago, to the Environment Agency for a permit.
However, specialists in the field, say: "Given the relatively low concentrations of NORM anticipated, operations are not expected to give rise to any significant contamination issues." Note the word "significant".
Water occurs naturally in geological formations and could be released during the testing phase to become liquid waste at the surface. After hydrocarbons are separated, this waste, which might contain radioactive material, will be stored in steel containers on the site.
The company's management plan then allows for the waste to accumulate in the tanks before being transported by road tanker to treatment plants in "an [sic] manner of preventing, and where that is not possible minimising, effects on people and the environment". Words that are more disturbing than comforting.
Based on the previous Balcombe drill-site data, it has been "estimated" that approximately 82 cubic metres of waste water will arrive at the surface. If they are wrong, a total storage of three times that amount has been allowed for.
If I understand the information correctly, this waste water, when eventually carried on the roads, is "out-of-scope of the Carriage of Dangerous Goods regulations" - meaning it is "considered a low risk of harm in transit".
It's a complicated subject to grasp immediately and we have to rely on experts. So, if the Environment Agency allows the application, I can only assume that Cuadrilla has presented a good case for its Best Available Technique (BAT) Statement - safety, monitoring, storage, transport, security, etc, are all there and, hopefully, meet the requirements. The closing date for comments on the application is tomorrow (August 13).
However, remember that this is just the EXPLORATION phase.
Before going any further, someone needs to explain, in simple terms, how much Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material might be unleashed on Balcombe during any fracking operations - SHOULD THESE BE ALLOWED.
In other words, convince me it is safe - before you try to convince me that we need industrial processes in the heart of the countryside.
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Frack Free Fernhurst - worth a read
Some of this is OTT, but worth a read
http://www.frackfreefernhurst.com/
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http://www.frackfreefernhurst.com/
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What if they are wrong about fracking and it does cause damage?
I'm not exactly a Green activist!
But, crossing the Ashdown Forest recently, I thought: What if they are wrong and fracking does damage the environment? I would hate to see all that fantastic countryside lost for ever.
Having read some geology reports (I do actually have a BSc in Geography and did geology and botany on the course), I understand that earthquakes are unlikely. The process expels no more energy than someone jumping from a ladder. Filling the landscape with reservoirs is more dangerous because of the weight of the water. Having said that, it's not wise to do such things in a fault zone!
However, geologists are concerned with the concrete fillings of the wells, which can crack under pressure, possibly causing contamination. Chemicals are used in the fracking process.
Another concern is that it is an industrial process in the heart of the countryside, bringing lorries, muck, noise etc etc.
My jury is out...
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But, crossing the Ashdown Forest recently, I thought: What if they are wrong and fracking does damage the environment? I would hate to see all that fantastic countryside lost for ever.
Having read some geology reports (I do actually have a BSc in Geography and did geology and botany on the course), I understand that earthquakes are unlikely. The process expels no more energy than someone jumping from a ladder. Filling the landscape with reservoirs is more dangerous because of the weight of the water. Having said that, it's not wise to do such things in a fault zone!
However, geologists are concerned with the concrete fillings of the wells, which can crack under pressure, possibly causing contamination. Chemicals are used in the fracking process.
Another concern is that it is an industrial process in the heart of the countryside, bringing lorries, muck, noise etc etc.
My jury is out...
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Sunday, August 04, 2013
Amazing Roman mosaics at Bignor Villa, Sussex, England
See some of the mosaics of Bignor Roman Villa in a gallery of pictures at UKpix.com
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Panorama of Brighton seafront, UK
http://ukpix.com/latest-pictures/brighton-seafront-panorama/
FROM THE PICTURE A DAY PROJECT 2013
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Pictures of steam trains - the Bluebell Railway, Sussex, England
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