Review outlines steps for N.B. government to roll back fracking moratorium

A commission looking into fracking in New Brunswick has laid down numerous conditions that should be met before the province lifts its moratorium on shale gas development.

The New Brunswick Commission on Hydraulic Fracturing released the results of its 11-month review in Fredericton on Friday.

READ MORE: N.B. residents continue to voice concerns against shale gas development

Primary recommendations from the report were to mitigate impacts on public infrastructure and maximize benefits to New Brunswick citizens.

“It is our hope that our report will help to change the tone and the substance of the conversation by developing a new approach to community-focused development,” said commissioner Cheryl Robertson.

Other conditions included having a social licence in place and consulting with First Nations, which could ultimately prove difficult to implement.

“In terms of social licence, it laid out a number of ideas that are going to take a very long time to implement,” Green Party Leader David Coon said. “Rebuilding trust in public institutions for one thing, two…rebuilding the broken relationship with First Nations, these are long-term initiatives.”

READ MORE: New Brunswick election: Did shale gas and fracking sway the vote?

The Opposition said the idea of long-term solutions is not encouraging, and that the moratorium on fracking the government imposed has set the province back years.

“What they’ve done here with this commission was a publicity stunt and it’s just sent it further and further behind,” Southwest Miramichi-Bay du Vin MLA Jake Stewart said.

Energy and Mines Minister Donald Arsenault defended the government’s stance.

“There’s a lot to think about and we’re going to take the time we need in order to read the report as well as have a good discussion on it,” he said.

In authoring the report, the commission met with 228 individuals and received 135 submissions since last March.