I NOTE that a spokesman for Third Energy told the Gazette & Herald that “all additives used in the hydraulic fracturing process have to be approved as non-hazardous by the Environment Agency”.

Just before Christmas, a closed meeting of Ryedale councillors was given a presentation by a team of about seven officials. The team was led by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and included senior ranking officers of the Environment Agency and HSE. I asked about the chemicals in the fracking fluid and was told that details would have to be supplied to HSE and the Environment Agency and that approval would only be given to chemicals on an “approved list”.

We were then categorically told that this “approved list” was not one approved by either agency, but was the “industry approved” list. I asked for a copy of the list. They said they would send one. I am still waiting.

I’m sure we would all like to know why our public servants are not going to approve this list. Perhaps the reason may lie in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership agreement (TTIP), which is being (or has been) negotiated between the US and the EU.

I understand this provides that no regulations in any one state or country should be any more stringent than those of any other state or country, so making it impossible for, say, the UK to impose more stringent regulations on, eg. fracking, than, say, the state of Texas.

If this is right, this may explain why the UK is not imposing its own requirements in regard to the regulation of fracking fluids, but is only going to enforce “industry-approved” standards, which will only have to comply with the standards of the states which apply the least stringent regulations.

If this is correct, if only in general terms, it follows that the regulation process for all aspects of fracking in the UK may become strictly limited to enforcing “industry standards”, which have not prevented massive environmental damage over the US, where UK standards do not apply.

The situation requires clarification. I have submitted a series of detailed questions to Ryedale District Council and asked officers for full written answers from DECC and from Third Energy at least a week before the public meeting, which is being arranged. We need to know if the effect of the TTIP is as drastic as suggested above, and how much control the UK government is going to be allowed to have over the fracking process.

Clearly, if the answer is that all we can do is to enforce requirements which have been set by the industry, there is a very strong case for banning fracking altogether.

If we can’t get satisfactory answers in time to allow for verification by the opposition, we should have every reason to fear the worst.

Paul Andrews, Ryedale district councillor for the Malton ward