US fracking expert visits Scotland
Friends of the Earth Scotland will host Wenonah Hauter, Founder and Executive Director of Food & Water Watch US and a leading fracking activist on Saturday 10th June. She’ll be in Edinburgh discussing her new book ‘Frackopoly’ which chronicles the rise of the fracking industry and the growing movement against fracking in her home country.
‘Frackopoly’ exposes the corruption and greed that the oil and gas industry has used to gain power in U.S. politics and how a growing grassroots movement can stand up to ban fracking and keep fossil fuels in the ground.
She will also participate in a panel discussion with those involved in the campaign against fracking in Scotland and in Europe. This will take place after the Friends of the Earth Annual General Meeting but is open to the public and free to attend.
Dr Richard Dixon, Director of Friends of the Earth Scotland commented,
“We’re delighted to have Wenonah joining us to share her experiences from the frontline of the fight against fracking. Her vast experience and leadership of an organisation committed to stopping this dirty, dangerous industry can help people here in our own efforts to stop this new frontier of fossil fuels.
“Together we’ll be discussing Scotland’s experience with unconventional oil and gas and exploring ways in which communities can demonstrate solidarity with each other. The clear warnings from the disastrous impact of fracking on communities in the US should be heeded by decision makers in Scotland as they assess the results of our recent public consultation.
“The links between Scotland and the US are clear with the continued imports of fracked gas across the Atlantic to the Grangemouth petrochemical plant. We urge the Scottish Government to start planning seriously for a fair transition to a low-carbon economy across all sectors. Fracking should not happen here in Scotland, or anywhere.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
‘Frackopoly’ Book Tour by Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director of Food & Water Watch US. City of Edinburgh Methodist Church, Sat 10th June 2pm Free tickets: https://frackopoly.eventbrite.co.uk
Wenonah Hauter is an activist, author and progressive policy advocate. She is the founder and executive director of Food & Water Watch, an organization that, under her leadership, has fundamentally transformed the national debate about hydraulic fracturing (fracking), energy and the environment. https://www.wenonahhauter.org/meet-wenonah-hauter/
Print quality photos of Wenonah and the book are available at https://www.wenonahhauter.org/resources/
More information on the book http://www.wenonahhauter.org/books/frackopoly/
Praise for the book:
Mark Ruffalo, actor, director, and advisory board member of Americans Against Fracking
“Real life anti-fracking superhero Wenonah Hauter delivers the definitive story on how big oil and gas corporations captured our political system and schemed to frack America and the growing grassroots movement to retake our democracy and protect our planet.”
Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything and The Shock Doctrine
“A gripping and encyclopedic survey of the fracking menace, from the rise of a fossil-fueled U.S. oligarchy to the growing global wave of hard-won fracking bans. Hauter skillfully reveals fracking’s twin legacy: ghost towns, poisoned and quaking landscapes, and a scorching atmosphere on the one hand, and a remarkable wave of courage, resistance, and rising community power on the other.”
Bill McKibben, environmentalist and author of Oil and Honey
“A truly powerful manifesto about one of the greatest environmental fights on our planet today’s from one of its greatest champions!”
Scotland’s recent consultation on fracking and unconventional oil and gas ran for 4 months, and closed on Wed 31st May. The Scottish Government will conduct an analysis of responses over the next few months and has committed to making a recommendation to Parliament before the end of the year. MSPs will be invited to debate and vote on the issue, before Ministers make their minds up on the future of the industry. More than 40,000 people responded to the consultation calling for an outright ban. https://stopfracking.scot/latest-news/thousands-call-fracking-ban
Friends of the Earth Scotland is
* Scotland’s leading environmental campaigning organisation
* An independent Scottish charity with a network of thousands of supporters and active local groups across Scotland
* Part of the largest grassroots environmental network in the world, uniting over 2 million supporters, 75 national member groups, and some 5,000 local activist groups.
www.foe-scotland.org.uk