On July 10, 2015, Dutch
Minister of Economic Affairs, Henk Kamp, announced
that the Dutch Government has banned commercial exploration and extraction of
shale gas over the next five years. He also declared that existing permits for
exploration activities will not be renewed. According to the government, there
remain too many uncertainties regarding the environmental and public health
consequences of shale gas development.
This moratorium is an
extension of a previous temporary ban on hydraulic fracturing voted by the
Dutch Parliament in September 2013.
This decision comes at
a time when the District Court of the Hague recently ruled
against the Netherlands requiring the country to reduce its annual greenhouse
gas emissions by at least 25% at the end of 2020. When announcing the
continuity of the shale gas moratorium, Henk Kamp specified that the future
possibility of shale gas development will be examined in light of sustainable
energy goals.
Written by Chloe Marie - Research Fellow
07/16/2015
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