Radical action is needed to sustain essential resources for the North West according to a report out this week and exploitation of the region’s shale gas deposits should be prioritised.
The North West Business Leadership Team’s latest report identifies the state of the region’s essential resources, and the action required to optimise the future supplies of food, water and energy by 2040.
The report identified these three essential resources as not only offering the key to future security but the key for future growth and investment opportunities. Fundamental questions about the reliability of energy supply, the sufficiency of food production and the availability of a resilient water supply have reached a critical point, according to the grouping of regional business leaders, and compelling reasons for investment have been outlined.
The group forecasts that by 2040, the region will be championing new methods of economically sustainable and resource-efficient food production to supplement existing local supply and says methods such as the farming of fresh produce in urban environments or sustainable fish farming will help to ease reliance on food imports, lower transportation costs and generate new employment.
It will also become a global leader in the development of cost-effective techniques for the recovery of valuable resources such as energy, water and fertiliser nutrients from existing food and agricultural waste streams to improve economic returns whilst minimising environmental harm for food producers locally and around the world.
The North West will boast great bathing waters, and some of the cleanest beaches and rivers in Europe supporting coastal tourism and coastally located businesses and will be a leading centre for water-efficient commercial and industrial use.
For energy supply the report is the most controversial in forecasting that businesses based in the North West will be able to access a secure UK gas supply through responsible utilisation of the North West‘s shale gas reserves, reducing the UK’s and the region’s reliance on imported gas.
NWBLT are also unveiling a physical computer controlled model of the North West, based in the IFB Hub, which shows the available power sources and projected new ones using tidal energy and other renewable sources.
