Waste water cost to limit UK fracking, say scientists

A lack of specialist waste treatment plants could limit the development of fracking in the UK, according to researchers from the University of Edinburgh.

The study has suggested the safe treatment and disposal of waste water from fracking could cost more than £1 million over the lifetime of each well.

Scientists studied waste water from wells in the US to better understand the volume that would be generated by a UK shale gas industry.

They reviewed the methods used to treat waste from the fracking process in which gas is extracted from shale rock by injecting water and sand at high pressure.

It was found treating the salinity and other chemicals in waste water at existing plants could cost between £100,000 and £1m for each well.