The Church of Scotland has welcomed a Scottish Government announcement that it will not support the development of Unconventional Oil and Gas (‘fracking’).

In a statement, the church acknowledged that around 80% of homes in Scotland rely on gas for heating, and that the supply of natural gas from the North Sea was winding down. However, it said that the correct response was for Scotland to move to a low carbon economy based on renewable energy.

“Not only does Scotland have the natural resources but it also has the human resources – engineers, skilled workers from the offshore industries and universities and others – to do this. The Church believes that this approach offers a much better opportunity for jobs and the economy than a dash for gas,” added the statement.

Church of Scotland climate change officer, Adrian Shaw, said: “We recognise that people in congregations have widely differing views but fracking was always an uncertain prospect in Scotland because of our complex geology.

“Areas that have been identified as being suitable are in the central belt, the most densely populated part of the country.”