A campaign to keep Kirklees ‘frack-free’ has been made.

Huddersfield’s Friends of the Earth campaign group took to the streets of the town centre to raise awareness of fracking.

And they have also launched an online petition calling for a ban.

Fracking is a controversial technique of shale gas exploration which involves drilling down into the earth before a high-pressure water mixture is directed at the rock to release the gas inside.

Chayley Collis from Huddersfield FoE said: “Kirklees is frack-free at the moment but this could change and we need to send a strong message to the Government that we want to keep it out of Kirklees and the UK.

“We also need to take urgent action to prevent the Government’s current plans to make changes to trespass laws that would allow fracking companies to drill under homes in the UK without permission.”

No bid has been made to frack in Kirklees but a British Geological survey has identified parts of the borough for its potential.

Any bid will face opposition as Kirklees full council voted in favour of a motion to form a policy should a fracking bid be made.

Clr Andrew Cooper, Newsome Green Party, has previously said Yorkshire could be in the fracking “firing line” due to its history of coal-mining.

Members of Friends of the Earth are calling for a stop to fracking in the UK because of its contribution towards dangerous climate change, links to drinking water contamination in USA and Australia and they believe it is unlikely to lower fuel bills.

Friends of the Earth is collecting signatures for an online petition to ask MPs to stop companies fracking under homes without permission visit huddersfieldfoe.wordpress.com to sign it.