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Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images The Jackdaw gas field sits in the middle of the North Sea, 150 miles east of Aberdeen. For the past few years – alongside the Rosebank oilfield – it has been the subject of various consultations, legal spats and political wrangling over whether drilling should be allowed. On Wednesday 21 October, Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh announced that the government had given the green light to drilling Jackdaw.
Both Jackdaw and Rosebank were granted licences by the previous Conservative government, but they were put on hold after a series of legal challenges. The two fields have remained in limbo ever since. Environmental activists insist that approving extraction will undermine the government’s climate commitments and delay efforts to slow climate change right at the moment when heatwaves and extreme weather are becoming a regular occurrence.
Others argue that given the government’s stance that oil and gas is likely to be part of the UK’s energy mix for years to come, not allowing drilling in the North Sea is pointlessly stymying growth. Subscribe to the New Statesman and save 40% for 1 year! Related
Source: New Statesman
