Germany is set to lift its ban on fracking as early as next year, after caving in to business demands that it should reduce its dependency on Russian energy and boost competitiveness with US manufacturers.

德国政府可能最早于明年取消水力压裂法禁令，它已屈从于商界要求，以降低对俄罗斯能源的依赖，来提高相对于美国制造商的竞争力。

Applications to carry out the controversial process for extracting the country’s estimated 2.3tn cubic metres shale gas reserves will be subject to an environmental impact assessment, under new legislation to be discussed by the cabinet before the summer recess.

德国页岩气储量约为2.3万亿立方米。根据德国内阁将在夏休前讨论的新法案，以水力压裂法开采页岩气的申请需接受环境影响评估。

Fracking has been the subject of a fierce debate in Germany’s ruling coalition, with some politicians keen to reduce reliance on Russian energy imports, while others fear the impact of fracking chemicals on a densely populated country.

水力压裂法一直是德国执政联盟激烈辩论的一个焦点问题，有些政治家急切希望降低对俄罗斯能源进口的依赖，另一些政治家则担心，水力压裂法使用的化学物质可能对这个人口稠密国家造成不良影响。

German manufacturers have been strong advocates of the new technology, which they believe has provided cheap shale gas energy to their US competitors while Germany grapples with a costly switch to subsidised renewables.

德国制造商一直大力倡导采纳水力压裂法，他们认为，这种新技术已向美国竞争对手提供了廉价的页岩气，而德国还在艰难地向依赖政府补贴的可再生能源转型，这种转型代价高昂。

Details of the new regulations emerged in a letter from Sigmar Gabriel, German economy minister, to the head of the Bundestag’s budget committee. In the letter, Mr Gabriel wrote that permission to carry out fracking would be subject to approval from regional water authorities and that “further requirements for the fracking permit process are still being considered”.

在写给德国联邦议院(Bundestag)预算委员会主席的一封信中，德国经济和能源部长西格马尔•加布里尔(Sigmar Gabriel)提到了新法案的细节。他在信中写道，放行水力压裂法需得到地方水务当局的批准，“对水力压裂法审批流程的更多要求还在考虑中”。

The technology, which involves pumping a mix of chemicals, sand and water into the ground to fracture gas-bearing rock, will be banned in areas where water quality is officially protected.

运用水力压裂法，需向地表内注入化学物质、沙与水的混合物，以压裂含有天然气的岩层。一些水质受到官方保护的地区将禁止使用这种技术。

Chemicals used in fracking in the US are potentially harmful to the health of humans and wildlife, researchers have found. In Germany, opponents to fracking include the brewing industry, which fears that it could taint the water used to brew beer.

研究者发现，在美国，水力压裂法使用的化学物质可能危害人类与野生动植物的健康。在德国，水力压裂法的反对者包括酿酒业，该行业担心此法可能污染用以酿造啤酒的水源。