Nottinghamshire villagers win 10 year battle to stop nearby fracking

Villagers in Nottinghamshire are celebrating tonight, after winning a ten-year battle to stop an operation to drill for shale gas close to where they live.

The company behind the fracking project has now abandoned the site at Misson Springs.

Conservationists had also been fighting the scheme because it was so close to an important wildlife habitat.

It was 2014 when they first started protesting against these plans, when the company IGas announced that it wanted to drill for shell gas at a former RAF base nearby.

Residents were concerned about the impacts on traffic and also the environmental concerns.

One of the main concerns about Springs Road had been the impact of shale gas operators on rare and threatened wildlife on the Misson Carr wetland fen, including all five species of British owls.

Long eared owls on the SSSI had moved from their habitual breeding locations in 2018, away from the noise of the well pad.

The owls became a symbol of the campaign against Springs Road. Huge model owls were frequently part of protests across the country against fracking and onshore oil and gas.

Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust had also been working alongside the villagers throughout their campaign.

They said: "It's a good day for wildlife."

ITV News Central has approached IGas for comment.

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