It’s claimed the signing of a controversial EU law which would allow a gas terminal in the Shannon estuary go ahead would be the death knell for many Clare communities.
Fracking has been banned in Ireland for two years now but today could see the EU allow this terminal to proceed and process imported fracked gas.
Today, a special list of European energy projects are due to be signed off in Brussels.
Among them is the controversial Shannon LNG terminal, which would be built near Tarbert in Co. Kerry, just across the Estuary from West Clare.
It’s expected that, once open, the gas processing plant would handle imported fracked gas, even though fracking itself has been banned in Ireland since 2017.
The process involves drilling down into the earth before a high-pressure water mixture is directed at the rock to release the gas inside but has caused serious environmental concerns the world over.
But despite these, the government’s supported this project to date, including in the Dáil yesterday when Environment Minister Richard Bruton had this to say.
These comments have not been well received here in Clare.
Environmentalist group Futureproof Clare has accused the government of hypocrisy, and of ignoring public concern.
While Kilkee Fianna Fáil Councillor Cillian Murphy is concerned about the impact of fracked gas on wildlife in the estuary and what that could do to jobs in Clare that rely on the water.
