27/01/2014 Inside Out North West

Hello and welcome to Inside Out North west. Tonight we investigate

thousand fracking industry plans to dispose of radiation. The

implications are so severe, according to some experts, that it

could put the whole of the industry in this country into a state of

limbo. 60s fashion icon and David Hockney muse, Celia Birtwell talks

us to. There a photograph of Mrs Jagger wearing this. And the

football photographer turning his camera on the fans.

Tonight a leading expert in radioactive waste warns that the

fracking industry could be forced into a state of limbo, they won t be

able to dispose of contaminated water. The broadcaster and explorer

Paul Rose has this exclusive report. This bridge in Salford marks the

start of the Manchester Ship Canal ` a waterway which helped

revolutionise the two cities turning them into industrial giants of the

early 20th century. Now, the Canal will be leaving an indelible mark in

a new revolution ` fracking and the dash for gas. This programme will be

investigating why almost two million gallons of radioactive water `

produced by the fracking company Cuadrilla ` was processed at a

nearby water treatment works and then discharged ` quite legally `

into the Canal. And we'll be asking could it happen again?

Presse Hall in Lancashire, a site operated by Cuadrilla Resources is

so far the only well in the UK to have advanced from exploration for

shale gas to the next phase ` hydraulic fracturing. For some home

grown shale gas is a bonus and energy independence. We have got to

have affordable energy. For others it's a misfortune leading to worries

` from earthquakes and poisoning of the water table, to fears about

increased lorry traffic and harm to wildlife. One wants fracking in the

UK. But there is a proven danger that has yet to fully surface `

radiation. And the implications of that radioactivity are so severe,

according to some experts, that they could put the whole industry in this

country into a state of limbo. Water is the lifeblood of fracking.

Without huge amounts of it, engineers couldn't get the gas they

seek. But that same process unlocks natural radioactive material and

it's the cleaning of that contaminated water which could

become the industry's Achilles' heel. Hydraulic Fracturing, or

fracking as it's known, is a process which happens 8,000 feet ` some two

and a half kilometres ` down there. The bedrock is shattered to release

methane gas. They drill straight, then horizontally. Water and

chemicals are injected at high pressure to fracture the rock. Tiny

grains ` like sand ` hold the fissures open. Molecules of gas are

released and flushed back to the surface. And it's water which could

be a problem for fracking companies. Flushed out fluid also contains

radiation. At Presse Hall, the Environment Agency found traces of

uranium and thorium. The levels of radium were 90 times higher than

you'd find in drinking water. Now, we don't want to be alarmist ` this

is not a Chernobyl in waiting, the radiation is low level. It's called

NORM ` Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material, and it's all

around us in nature. But the fact remains, there is a danger. And

because of that, when it comes to clearing up, fracking moves into a

new realm. The Dounreay nuclear research facility in Scotland was

opened in the mid`50's but in recent years has been in the process of

shutting down. Some wear protective clothing, because they're in contact

with radioactive material. It can be lethal if the proper precautions are

not taken. Dr Trevor Jones from Bramhall in Stockport has been

involved in the Dounreay clean up project, with a similar role at

Sellafield. As one of the UK's first accredited radioactive waste

advisers. He's legally recognised by regulators as an expert. I've come

to the banks of a swollen River Lune, deep in the picturesque Forest

of Bowland, so he can help me understand this stuff called NORM.

Radioactivity is everywhere around us, in the food we eat, in the rocks

and the soil and the water. This is shale, an example of the Bowland

Shale from which they're proposing to extract shale gas from underneath

Lancashire. And it also contains concentrations of metals dissolved

from the rock, including some radioactive metals. The main one of

interest in terms of shale gas and NORM is radium. If I put the

detector up to it you can probably hear the radioactivity count ` it's

going up to about 300 counts per second ` so it's about three times

the background radioactivity, just from this natural exposure of shale.

So while we're standing here, close to this shale, are we in any danger

of absorbing too much radiation No, the radiation that's coming off this

is part of the background radiation that we're exposed to all the time.

The NORM radiation only becomes a health issue, if it gets into the

body ` and the most obvious route would be through water. So how much

of this radioactive water was there? Well, this place might help us

understand it a little bit better. This is the Manchester Aquatics

Centre and one of the largest pools in the country. How much water? I'll

show you. The diving pool holds 2,500 cubic metres of water. We know

from the Environment Agency that 8,400 cubic metres of contaminated

water was produced in Lancashire. So they could have filled this pool

three times over and still had a bit left. All of it would have to be

treated to neutralise the radioactivity. And that's just one

well. Caudrilla don't know how many wells they might frack, but have

estimated it might be as many as 800. And that would produce enough

flowback water to fill nearly 2 700 of these pools. And that's just one

company. A recent Government report reckoned in the North West the total

amount of contaminated water could be the equivalent of 5,000 pools

like this. The same report estimated that fracking could account for

about 3% of all of the UK's annual wastewater and that could place a

substantial burden on the sewage infrastructure. Another report

indicate that the treatment capacity should not represent a problem in

the UK. A view shared by Cuadrilla. Offshore oil and gas operators pump

their contaminated flowback waters back into the North Sea where the

huge dilution renders it less dangerous. That option isn't open to

onshore developers. Caudrilla stored some of the water in these tanks at

Preese Hall. At the time, regulations classed it as industrial

effluent. It was processed at the Daveyhulme Waste Water Treatment

works in Trafford before being flushed into the Ship Canal. But

there were warnings about health risks just a few months before that

discharge ` and they came from America. In Pennsylvania there are

more than 4,000 wells, producing millions of gallons of contaminated

water. Some has been treated at public sewage works. In March 2 11,

the US Environmental Protection Agency wrote to the State of

Pennsylvania warning of dangers that radiation was posing to the public.

This is a copy of that letter ` and it makes for worrying reading. The

Agency tells Pennsylvania: The letter says wastewater treatment

facilities can't remove many of the substances, and high concentrations

can impair the ability of treatment facilities to properly treat

domestic sewage. It says it's critical to inform the public as to

whether, and at what levels, radionuclides occur in their water

supply. Pennsylvania has launched an inquiry, with a report due in April.

Soon after the discharge into the Canal, the regulations here did

change. Flowback water is now classed as radioactive waste. The

operator needs a permit, and so does the water treatment works.

A The Environment Agency would not grant a permit ` a radioactive

substances permit ` to the fracking company until they were satisfied

that a disposal route was available for the waste.

They would not be simply allowed to accumulate the waste in the hope or

expectation that a disposal route would become available in the

future. And where does that leave the

industry? It means that significant investment will be required because

suitable treatment technologies are not available off the shelf and that

will inevitably delay fracking operations.

We've learned that a month ago, Cuadrilla withdrew the last of its

applications for a radioactive substances permit from the

Environment Agency. And It may submit more in the future. Cuadrilla

told us without one, it can drill, but not frack.

Following recent changes in the Environment Agency's

Remsol, based in Preston, is a waste management company hired by

Cuadrilla. They may have a solution to the radiation. In trials, they

say they've developed a technique which reduces the radioactivity by

90%, and they believe it can be scaled up for full production.

In general terms, are you saying that your aim is extract as much of

the NORM as possible from the water and convert that into a solid? Yeah,

in essence we're trying to extract those tiny suspended solids where we

find the Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material and heavy

metals and to lock them into a solid format that can then be safely

deposited at landfill sites that are authorised and permitted to receive

and deal with non`hazardous waste. format that can then be safely

deposited at landfill sites And in fact, once it's in that solid form

the presence of that Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material

doesn't then render that material a radioactive waste for disposal

purposes. The trials would still need to be

proved for full scale production, but if Remsol and Cuadrilla can

develop a safe treatment for the water, they'd still need to move it

out of the North West. They plan to use a fleet of tankers, carrying

bigger volumes than conventional vehicles, and with more safety

features. The likelihood of any material

escaping in the event of an accident is very, very limited. They estimate

each well will need a total of about 114 tanker journeys.

Government figures suggest many more than that. We've based our numbers

on the fracture plans that we've seen from an operator. I think

everyone else, at this stage, is basing their assumptions on

anecdotal evidence and analogues from around the world and not

necessarily from the UK. Fracking may or may not become a

boom industry. The operators will only know what's down by drilling

many more exploratory wells. And if the gas is viable to extract,

they'll be producing lots and lots of flowback water contaminated with

radiation. And the only certainty we have now is that no one ` yet ` can

guarantee how those sorts of volumes are going to be cleaned.

We are a football history captured forever. I always thought the ground

was the most constant thing, but it is not even that. It is the fans.

She's David Hockney's muse, her fans range from the Rolling Stones to

Kate Moss. Celia Birtwell and her husband Ossie Clarke were northern

fashion icons in the swinging ' 0s ` and she's still designing today

Jacey Normand went to meet her. Her designs dressed the rich and

famous. She became David Hockney's muse... And was photographed by pop

artist Andy Warhol... And even top society photographer Cecil Beaton.

It's a far cry from her early life in Manchester. She's come back to

the north to be reunited with some of the dresses she hasn't seen for

over 40 years. It's a chance for a trip down memory lane.

I was brought up in press which My father was very bookish and rather a

learned man. In fact, in different times, he would have gone to

university. He had to work from the age of 14. And then my mother sewed.

She made all of our clothes. I used to sit and watch. It was like

therapy for me, because I never learned how to sew. And then I went

to Salford At School. Where we are right now must be very familiar

Yes, I can feel quite this Celtic about this building. This is Salford

At School. The top floor only, and the very top with the dome was the

life class. We used to have parties, we used to draw naked

people. As soon as I got here, I thought, wow, this is where I want

to be. At the time Salford was an

industrial city, black with chimney smoke from the factories and made

famous by local artist LS Lowry He had also been to Salford Art School

years before Celia, but was still a regular visitor. Periodically, I

would see a minute long raincoat going up those steps into their and

also into that place, which was a library. The present around here

always reminds me of him. And it wasn't only Lowry who was attracted

to the charm of the cobbled streets and back alleys of Salford. A young

writer who posed for Celia at the art college was to put it well and

truly on the map. Tony Warren would go and see my friend Roy's parents,

and he would go and chat to them in the evenings because he was

preparing to make this extraordinary programme, Coronation Street. So a

lot of the elite Coronation Streets were based on Salford and his

understanding of the life here. And he was a life model for us, so he

would pose for us in that life class up there, and that probably made him

more money before he set out to be quite a brilliant writer.

It was during this time that Celia met the man who would go on to be

her husband and fashion partner Ossie Clarke. He lived in Warrington

and went to Manchester Art College. It is extraordinary, all these

people that you came across a new well creatively. What is it about

Salford that has created such a generation of artists? I don't know.

I think everything has a period of excellence, and none of us knew what

was going to happen in the future. But I think it happens every so

often, doesn't it, really? And I am here to live the tail!

Celia met up with Ossie again in London. They married, had two sons

and found fame, becoming a leading influence in British fashion. There

was an innocence about it, because it was not really connected to money

and commercial uses in the way it was now. It was Boutiques, Mary

Quant had just been here before we came along, so that was really very

exciting. And the music of the time was very exciting. White

She designed the textiles while he cut and created the styles. She

embellished his work. I was confident in that, because my work

was soft, and I think his hard edged vision, quite strict and tailored,

and my sort of soft, feminine work. Quite reasonable at nine guineas.

Ossie's fashion shows became the stuff of legend. He was the first to

introduce music and dance, making them theatrical events, attracting

the glitterati. And looking on with approval, George Harrison, and Patti

Boyd, who is modelling at the show, and John Lennon. At the time there

was a boom in northern talent taking London by storm, with The Beatles

leading the way. And it wasn't just music royalty that came to the

shows. Rising star David Hockney attended. Celia went on to become

his muse. That was another unexpected string to my bow. I was

very honoured, actually. He did some beautiful drawings of me in the

1970s. He has been a big player in my life will stop he introduced me

to all sorts of wonderful things. I think he has given me confidence,

actually. That is what I really thank him for. And it was during

this time that Hockney painted one of the UK's most popular double

portraits, which still hangs at the Tate. He couldn't get the carpet

right, he couldn't get Ossie's feet right. The carpet kind of covered

his feet up. We thought it was rather amusing. And the cat is

rather Blanche and not Percy. When I said it is not Percy, he said, are,

yes, but it has a better ring to it. Percy is infinitely better than Mr

and Mrs Clark and Blanche. But this famous couple in the painting went

on to divorce. Fashion changed and they went their separate ways. While

Ossie was to die almost penniless years later, ironically their

clothes became collector's items across the world, selling for

thousands as vintage. I think the word vintage has put a sort of label

on clothes now that is just becoming big business, really. Some of these

rare dresses have now been collected before being exhibited at Manchester

Costume Museum later this week. Today, Celia is going to see them

for the first time in decades. Well, they have a collection of some

of your dresses with Ossie Clarke, and I just wanted you to have a look

at them to see if you remembered any of them. I do, I do. It is quite

alarming. I know there is a photograph of Bianca Jagger wearing

this in cream in a shoot with Mick Jagger. This is a bonkers print if

ever I saw one! I think it was called Lamborghini jacket. Very rock

'n' roll. How does it feel for you knowing that people obviously still

collect these items of clothing And for large amounts of money, as well,

donate? It is extremely flattering, I suppose. To think that they are

sought after. I did think he was pretty good. I thought he was very,

very clever, and I was very lucky to work with someone who had this

amazing talent. I could embellish it, really. When you see them like

that, is it strange? Do you almost wish you had kept a big wardrobe?

No, no. It is very nice to see them, and I am so much part of them,

because they are my prints, so I am very lucky for people to collect

them. Celia's blend of vintage and modern, strongly influenced by

nature and artists like Picasso are now sought after by stores like Top

Shop and Uniqlo. Today she appeals to a new generation of fans like

Kate Moss. Some of them look like they could almost be worn now,

donate? This, for example, looks really contemporary, like something

you could get today. It's really nice, isn't it? Really nice,

actually. Very sweet. A lovely shape. It's been an emotional

journey back to the north for Celia, to see her designs on display at the

museum she used to visit as a child. It's been an extraordinary life in

fashion and design for a girl who never learnt to sew. I have very,

very fond memories of my art school days in Salford. I am amazed how

famous Salford has become. It is very emotional, really, and I am

very proud of coming from the North, so I can get quite weepy about it.

In the north`west, football is often described as a religion. It has

definitely taken over the life of Cumbrian photographer Stuart Roy

Clarke. He is `` has devoted 25 years of his life to chronicling the

changing face of the game. But not on the pitch, watching the highs and

lows of the fans. Get your T`shirts! All the scores on the back of your

T`shirts! It is the most romantic thing I can think of. I have been

going to football matches since any sort of date one could go on. I get

there very early, I go all the way around the stadium, and even around

the neighbourhood several times I like to be the first there. I like

to say, welcome. There will be 50,000 people there sometimes. I

almost feel like it is my stage You have to stand smack down the middle.

That is great. Thank you. I like to get the tops of the head of the

sunset. Hopefully, when they score this goal.

Everyone's jumping. Ideal material for Stewart. There is a guy here

going through all sorts of emotions and tortures. His wife is sitting

next to him. Almost 410 minutes to have time, I did a series of all the

expressions he went through. I have about ten that show the range of

emotions. All the other photographers at the

game are shooting the other way Do you want the goal from the other end

as well? I'd like to put Stuart in these shoes. Come and sit here with

this big lens. There must be some interesting characters up there Go

on, Wigan! I hope Stuart's is as nice as that.

You have to be able to see the pictures and shoot. CV people, see

the personalities, and usually, he gets the whole package in one frame.

My dad gave me a succession of cameras, a Polaroid one, and came

out of the front. There was the picture, and you could show it off

to people. That sense of magic has stuck with me ever since. The last

20 years have been the most fascinating. I have been in a

privileged position. I have a duty to hand over what I have seen. And

what he has recorded is a social history through the eyes of fans.

The constant, I always thought the ground was the most constant, but it

is not even that. It is the fans. It might not be the same fans, but it

is the spirit of the fans, the battle and handed from one set of

fans to the next. I think despite all the money in the game, and not

necessarily it filtering down, I just find it and unbelievable

spectacle. And I don't think I can tear myself away from that. I will

see more of you next season as well! And you can see more of those

amazing photographs in Stuart's and exhibition at the Northern football

Museum. We will be back at the same time

next Monday. Until then, goodbye. Next week... Ten years after the

Morecambe Bay cockling tragedy, we talk to the people who were there.

Rescale that was not really apparent until the following morning, when

the bodies started appearing. Jude Law has given evidence at the

phone hacking trial. The court heard a family member had sold stories

about him. A former reporter said he discussed intercepting phone calls

between two newspapers. Anger over flooding, a government minister has

been heckled by residents in Somerset.

He promised an action plan. Dave Lee Travis has told the court

he is not a sexual predator. He said he has a cuddly nature towards women

and denies indecent assault charges. Bill Roach has been cleared of one

offence. His defence should start tomorrow.

At the Grammy towards last night, Daft punk 13 prizes in giving

Hello I'm Annabel Tiffin, the latest from the North West. TV weatherman

Fred Talbot has been charged with a string of offences following

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