Plaid Cymru has taken aim at the country’s incumbent Labour government, after Welsh Labour AMs blocked proposals for a moratorium on fracking in Wales, despite having claimed to support such a move.

Hydraulic fracturing - or fracking - is an invasive fossil fuel extraction method, in which water and a mixture of chemicals are shot at high pressure into shale rock formations to release trapped natural gas. Though the coalition government has backed fracking in the UK, farmers and environmentalists have warned that the process could cause serious environmental damage and threaten public health. In particular, there are concerns about the impact on groundwater, and air pollution.

UK government plans to enable fracking sparked further criticism in 2014 when the coalition passed its Infrastructure Bill, which included changes to trespass laws that would allow companies access under landowners' properties without their permission. The Bill itself proved to be hugely controversial; Labour’s Lord Adonis noted in June 2014 that several key parts of the Bill, including the section relating to fracking, were missing when it was introduced in parliament.

On Wednesday, Plaid’s Shadow Minister for Environment and Energy said he was “frustrated” after the government blocked his party’s “efforts to protect Welsh communities from fracking.”

Plaid Cymru AMs had tabled an amendment to the Planning (Wales) Bill to include a moratorium on fracking, but Labour voted the amendment down despite claiming to support a moratorium.

On Wednesday, Llyr Gruffydd said, “Plaid Cymru has always opposed fracking and the dangers it poses to the environment and to public health, and we are the only party in the Assembly to work proactively to implement a moratorium on fracking. The Labour government claims to be against fracking, so there is no good reason for it to oppose Plaid Cymru’s motion today.”

Gruffydd said Plaid Cymru would prioritise green energy generation and warned that “Investing in a new carbon intensive energy source such as unconventional gas would move Wales in a very different direction.”

The shadow minister continued, “There is great confusion amongst the public because the Welsh Government has claimed that it has imposed a moratorium despite saying previously that they didn’t have the powers to do so. The amendment tabled by Plaid Cymru today would have enshrined it in legislation so that the people of Wales can be sure that no fracking will happen in their communities, but the government has now added to that confusion by voting it down.”

On Thursday, A spokesperson for the Welsh Government said, “Our position on fracking in Wales is clear. The Minister for Natural Resources recently issued a Direction imposing a moratorium on local planning authorities approving planning applications for fracking and this would inform the context for any planning application, together with our precautionary policies.”

Welsh Labour has been contacted for comment.