The environmental debate over fracking has escalated over the last few months, with new suggestions that the process will actually reduce energy bills for consumers, resulting in the debate becoming even more complex.The latest announcement by Cuadrilla suggests that by simply drilling one square mile of land in Lancashire, there will be enough gas to supply the whole of the UK for seven years. Cuadrilla has been backed by Centrica to carry out the drilling, and while Mr Egan, the chief executive of Cuadrilla has said that he is confident that this will create a great resource for consumers, Centrica has warned that it is not yet sure if the gas will be commercial to develop.There have been fears that the fracking processes will begin to “industrialise the landscape” and while Cuadrilla have denied this, they will still need to obtain planning permission in order to go ahead with drilling. And also if the drilling causes any tremor of 0.5 or over on the Richter Scale it must stop the fracking. This is following a minor tremor which followed drilling in 2011. Cuadrilla and Mr Egan argue that this level is actually very small and equates to the same level of movement as a bus driving past a front door.The contents of this article are intended for general information purposes only and shall not be deemed to be, or constitute legal advice. We cannot accept responsibility for any loss as a result of acts or omissions taken in respect of this article. Setfords Solicitors are a national full service law firm, with environmental and planning solicitors in Birmingham and across the country.