Faced with public resistance to the extraction of shale gas through hydraulic fracturing, geologists, regulators and industry advocates debated in Madrid how Spain might safely employ the technique while convincing the public of its potential for curbing the country’s dependence on foreign gas.
In contrast to the United States, where fracking is widespread, Spain is “practically unexplored for hydrocarbons” and continues to import nearly 100 percent of its gas from abroad, Mariano Marzo, professor of stratigraphy at the University of Barcelona’s geology department, said at the recent “Fracking and Water Uses” conference.
Marzo said Spain should “regulate, but not ban” ...