Public can have say on latest oil drilling update
BBCA campaign group is urging residents to have their say on the latest stage of a long-running legal battle over oil drilling in the Lincolnshire Wolds.
The decision to approve an oilfield in Biscathorpe was quashed in July last year following a Supreme Court judgement after a claim had been brought in by SOS Biscathorpe.
Last year, justices at the Supreme Court said emissions created by burning fossil fuels should be considered when granting planning permission for new drilling sites.
The public have until 28 July to submit their opinions on further information submitted by the developer, Egdon Resources, on the potential climate impact of burning extracted oil.
Mark Abbott, chief executive officer at Edgon Resources, said the company had submitted an assessment of the greenhouse gas emissions at the request of the Planning Inspectorate.
The documents can be viewed on the planning applications portal on Lincolnshire County Council's website.
The application for an oil well at Biscathorpe was initially refused by Lincolnshire County Council in 2021, but the company successfully appealed it before it was taken to the High Court.
SOS Biscathorpe, which has been fighting the plans for years, said the development "delivers almost nothing for national energy security, while threatening the integrity of one of Lincolnshire's most treasured natural areas".
Mr Abbott said: "Although we are in transition away from fossil fuels, we are still highly reliant on oil and gas for transportation, heating our homes and running our businesses."
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Egdon Resources previously said it could potentially extract 6.5 million barrels of oil over 15 years at the site.
People wanting to submit their opinions can do so by writing to the Planning Inspectorate using the Planning Inspectorate Portal on its website, a document on the appeal application stated.
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