Editorial: Time to put fracking facts out

Finally, we have a dollar amount.

The fracking debate has been raging for quite a while now, with plenty of people opposed to hydraulic fracturing because of the potential risks involved.

What has been lacking in this one-sided debate has been the extent of the oil and gas resources this controversial underground exploration method could tap into under Hawke's Bay.

Finally, Hastings Mayor Lawrence Yule has come out and put a dollar figure on what the economic benefits of our potential oil and gas resources could be. He says he has been told it could be worth one trillon dollars. That figure may be way off the mark, but it is a starting point.

Mr Yule wants to stress that his quoting this figure does not mean he, or his council, supports fracking. He says his council is waiting for the review of fracking by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment before it makes any formal stance on fracking. He also points out that fracking is not the only method of exploration. But, he has also made it clear that his council will seek to protect the aquifer and other waterways as an immediate priority.

"We will adopt a completely precautionary approach. The Heretaunga Plains aquifer is the life blood of Hawke's Bay and one of the most significant and pure forms of water in New Zealand."

He adds, however, that his council does acknowledge there may "be a significant mineral resource in our region which could generate significant GDP and jobs".

"This GDP and job benefits need to be clearly balanced against possible environmental risks," Mr Yule said.

This is all fair enough. It is understandable that the council, which is not a consenting authority for the majority of the consenting issues with exploration and extraction, wants to take a cautious approach and will do everything to protect the environment.

I think we all want this, but what we also want is to be given the facts on the economic benefits of the oil and gas resources. We also want to be given the pros and cons of fracking or any other method of exploration.

Mr Yule is the first public figure or businessman in the region to put a dollar amount on the economic benefit of exploration. This is good because finally a proper debate can begin.

A trillion dollars is a heck of a lot of money and I think most of us would love that sort of injection into our economy. Obviously, no one would want our beautiful pristine landscape turned into an industrial wasteland and worse still, for our water table to be contaminated. But we don't know that will happen.

I may not know much about fracking or oil and gas exploration, but I am interested in the upliftment of our region. Anything that can transform our region and create thousands of jobs deserves to be examined. If it turns out that all the scare stories are true, then we should not proceed. But if the economic benefits are even half the amount being bandied about - and if the risks are minimal - then it would be worth it.

Apache, the US company that appears to be interested in exploration in the region, has until now kept a very low profile. It has not even put in any resource consent applications. Obviously, it does not want to get flak from those opposed to fracking and is therefore keeping its head down until it decides whether or not to proceed with its application.

I think it is about time Apache and any other interested companies told the people of the region exactly what the economic benefits of any exploration could be. If it is one trillion dollars, show us where that figure comes from. They should also tell us what safety measures they would put in place to prevent any environmental disasters.

It is time for the facts to be put on the table so that informed decisions can be made.