Chemical worker thinks fracking could be the answer to Teesside's job problems
A Middlesbrough chemical worker has told TFM he thinks fracking could help alleviate job pressures on Teesside.
A Middlesbrough chemical worker has told TFM he thinks fracking could help alleviate job pressures on Teesside.
Jacob Young, who works at one of the old ICI sites in Wilton, says despite its negative connotations, people should give fracking a chance.
Fracking drills down into the earth and high-pressure water is directed at the rock to release gas.
The former Conservative candidate for Redcar says the region could be leading the way with these new energy industries.
He said: "There's a lot of horror stories about it, but I think it's going to happen anyway.
"What I would sooner see is us taking a lead on that and working out how we can do it safely."
Jacob also stresses that as well as creating energy, fracking produces ingredients essential for making plastics.
He added: "We can hold on to the existing manufacturing we have in this area, and attract new ones."
Thousands of people are out of work in Teesside after the closure of SSI's Redcar steel plant, and job cuts at HMRC tax offices and Boulby Potash mine.
The number of people directly affected by job losses, as well as supply chain companies have been estimated at between eight and ten thousand.
Some people are concerned about the possibility of bringing fracking to the region.
Robert Tucker is from Middlesbrough Friends of the Earth, he says it's not a long-term solution.
He said: "In the first year or two, you get a lot of gas out and after that it really tails off.
"Five years would be a realistic life time of the well, so that's it, five years."