LONDON, Feb. 5 (UPI) -- An environmental advocacy group said it's time for the British government to follow its peers and enact a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing.
The Welsh parliament voted in favor of a measure proposed by Liberal Democrat assemblyman Aled Roberts to ban the shale drilling practice known commonly as fracking.
The measure calls on the Welsh government to prevent fracking operations "unless it is proven to be safe for the environment and public health."
Donna Hume, a campaigner with the regional Friends of the Earth, said the British government needs to follow suit.
"It's time the government stopped trying to get this damaging and unpopular industry off the ground and started prioritizing energy efficiency and renewable energy," she said in a statement Wednesday.
The Scottish government in late January placed a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing so legislators could take time to review public health or other concerns associated with controversial drilling practice.
The bans come as those in the British government press ahead with its shale ambitions despite frustration surrounding the frontier natural gas sector.
The British government said shale gas could help advance a low-carbon economy at the same time as cutting dependence on foreign imports.
The British Environment Audit Committee in Parliament had considered a moratorium to "allow the uncertainty surrounding environmental risks to be fully resolved." With no ban in place, the British government was accused of siding with the interests of the energy sector.
