18/10/2013 10:39
Dozens held in Canada shale gas protest
At least 40 people were arrested after a protest at a shale gas development in the Canadian province of New Brunswick turned violent, the BBC reported, citing police.
A shot was fired, petrol bombs were tossed and police cars torched at the blockade near the town of Rexton.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said arrests were made for firearms violations, threats and intimidation.
Protesters have blockaded a staging area where an energy firm stores its equipment since 30 September.
Violence erupted as officers moved in to enforce a court injunction won by the company to remove the protesters' highway camp, said police.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officials say at least five of their vehicles were set on fire and destroyed, Molotov cocktails were hurled at officers, and at least one shot was fired by someone who was not a police officer.
SWN Resources, owned by Houston-based Southwestern Energy, is exploring the coastal province for shale gas.
The reserves are removed from the ground by a controversial practice known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
Opponents of the shale gas sector say drinking water can be polluted during this extraction process.
The protesters, including regional First Nations, want SWN's seismic testing to stop.