A British energy firm is pushing ahead with test drilling in Greater Manchester, paving the way for fracking. Residents and activists have gathered to try and block the action that they say threatens their communities and “backs them into a corner.”

Energy firm IGas has confirmed it will carry out drilling tests across the North West of England in search of large shale gas and oil deposits. The British Geological Survey estimates that the region may hold up to 1,300 trillion cubic feet of shale gas which could meet the UK’s energy demands for the next six years.

Fracking accesses hidden stores of gas by pumping water and chemicals at high pressure thousands of meters under the Earth’s surface, effectively forcing gas out of the rock. Environmental groups maintain the process can cause small earthquakes, water contamination and pollution.

Residents of Greater Manchester are dead set against the exploitation of…