An autonomous body granted concessions to Pemex to exploit unconventional reserves that require the use of hydraulic fracturing, a highly polluting technique.
The National Hydrocarbons Commission (CNH) approved the exploitation of unconventional gas deposits that require the use of the ‘fracking’ technique, even though the president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, was emphatic that he would not allow the use of hydraulic fracture during its administration.
On February 11, during a session of the CNH, a resolution was presented and approved for the modification of four exploration plans submitted by the state company Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex), through its subsidiary Exploración y Producción, in the Tampico Misantla Basin , located north of the city of Poza Rica, Veracruz.
In this approval, Pemex was authorized to explore non-conventional hydrocarbon formations, which includes authorizing the use of hydraulic fracturing, a technique that involves injecting a highly polluting chemical cocktail into the subsoil to fracture rocks and release shale gas. A method questioned for its negative effects on aquifers .
The authorization to exploit these deposits caused the Mexican Alliance against Fracking, made up of 40 civil organizations, to issue a statement in which it questioned the double discourse of the Mexican government.Ver imagen en Twitter
“The extensive academic documentation shows us that hydraulic fracturing or fracking is an inherently dangeroustechnique with short and long term consequences for communities, water, soil, air and climate, which has been banned in various ways. countries , states or provinces of various parts of the world, “says the text.
“It is alarming that, while the president reiterated his commitment to not allow ‘fracking’, Pemex’s plans and the CNH’s permits to carry out the practice in unconventional formations continue to ignore what was expressed by the chief executive,” the Alliance added. against Fracking.
The position of López Obrador
On February 4, during his morning press conference, President López Obrador was emphatic in pointing out that he would not allow exploitation with hydraulic fracture, despite the fact that the state-owned company Pemex had planned a budget to exploit deposits with this technique. . ” No to ‘fracking . ‘ That is the commitment,” said the Mexican president.
“Maybe because of the inertia, the use of this technology was established for the extraction of oil or gas, but it is not going to be used, it is a commitment, we are environmentalists, really, authentic”, added López Obrador.
The president’s call not to use the technique of hydraulic fracturing for the exploitation of hydrocarbons was a constant in his electoral campaign and the inauguration as president of Mexico.
“We will not use extraction methods for oil, for gas, for any raw material that affects nature and depletes water springs, such as fracking ,” said López Obrador during a speech at the Zocalo in Mexico City. , after assuming his position as president on December 1, 2018.
Controversial decision
The announcement about the authorization of the CNH to use hydraulic fracture caused a series of reactions on social networks by community organizations, academics, and specialists, who have warned of the social and environmental risks involved in this technique.
In mid-2018, inhabitants of the Huasteca Potosina, a region located in northeastern Mexico, showed their concern about the explorations carried out by Pemex in indigenous territories for the exploitation of shale gas using the hydraulic fracturing technique.
Source: RT, El Sol de Sanluis, regeneracion
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