AS A worried mum and resident of Ardingly I recently learned that Cuadrilla wants to drill again in Balcombe.

This time they are applying for permission to acidise instead of fracking. It might be a slightly different process, but the risks for our health and environment are the same.

Air polluting gases will be produced.

The air dispersion reports for the 2014 application showed some of the highest levels drifting from the flare to Balcombe in the area around the nursery of my son.

Waste water flows back from the well and nobody seems to be able to ensure that it will be non-hazardous (as there is a hydraulic link between Lower Stumble and Ardingly reservoir, my source of drinking water, this is a serious issue).

Finally, and most concerning, no independent body will monitor the works.

I ask you to support the campaign by Balcombe and other affected communities to resist oil exploration and subsequent industrialisation of the Weald.

It is our duty as citizens of this wonderful piece of land to protect its beauty and the natural places we are living in against these interventions, that may bring profit to a few, but pose risks to many.

Katja Rothe, Downshire Terrace, Street Lane, Ardingly