The Crack of Doom?

In the Beginning

In the sleek modern offices of the Scottish Geological Agency, Ross Geike and Elliot McKirdy sat opposite the representatives of Crack Energy.

Before them, on the board room table, a geological map of the nation was spread out.

The Crack Energy Company wanted to extract shale gas in Scotland.

It was by no means clear yet whether the Scottish government would give approval, but to Wayne Herschel and Frink Bovus it seemed that the permission would come through - “Hell, this was energy goddamit.”

Meantime Geikie had been told to co-operate with Crack Energy.

He indicated the areas that he and McKirdy knew were areas where shale gas could be present.

One large zone was in the Central Belt where, years ago, before the discovery of oil fields in America, shale had been mined for oil.

The other area was a wide belt that ran under the Solway, then well inland and almost right across the narrow ankles of Scotland, here on the English border.

Fiona Metcalf brought in the coffee just as McKirdy was voicing concerns about fracking.

He was talking about groundwater pollution.

Fiona admired his passion as he described the dangers of the process.

As soon as she had joined the department she had begun to appreciate his deep knowledge and skill, and how he guided her work.

On a field trip to Newcastleton she began to have feelings for him.

His manly physique and the stubble were part of it but he was gentle and kind.

McKirdy lent forward;

“Here,” he said, tapping the map with his pen, “is the southern Upland Fault.”

He drew a line from Ballantrae on the west right across Scotland to Dunbar on the east.

He moved further down the map and drew another line from just below the Solway to just below Berwick.

“This ,” he said, “is the Iapetus Suture.”

“Sounds like a term a surgeon would use.”Said Wayne, trying, but failing, with his southern drawl to sound intellectual.

“You’re not far out,” said Geike.

“This is where Scotland is joined to England. About 9 million years ago they were welded the gither.”

“So they were not always joined?”

“Oh no,” said Geike, "and when they came the gither it sent shock waves through all the rocks; then they were covered up wi sediment. That’s where ye might find yir shale gas.”

Geike was of medium build with a shock of red hair; a slightly urgent, intense young man, his voice a little high. But

Impressum

Verlag: BookRix GmbH & Co. KG

Texte: alastair macleod
Bildmaterialien: alastair macleod; "Crack," "Water Rushing In ," and "The Widening Solway Channel" royalty free photos from Dreamstime.
Lektorat: alastair macleod
Übersetzung: cover typeset in classical
Tag der Veröffentlichung: 09.05.2014
ISBN: 978-3-7368-0985-7

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Disclaimer: All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The book is dedicated to the Rocks of Scotland.