Business groups urge an end to NB fracking moratorium

FREDERICTON — A collection of business groups is calling on the New Brunswick government to lift its fracking moratorium.

Joel Richardson, vice-president of the New Brunswick division of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME), is among those calling for an end to the moratorium on hydraulic fracturing.

He says the jobs that could be created by a shale gas industry are needed to help lift the province out of an economic slump.

However, Jim Emberger, a spokesman for the New Brunswick Anti-Shale Gas Alliance, says it’s an act of desperation for an industry where environmental concerns have risen and prices have fallen.

New Brunswick’s Liberal government imposed the moratorium in December 2014 to allow for time to address public concerns.

© 2016 The Canadian Press