By David Derbyshire Last updated at 12:19 AM on 23rd September 2011 Even the most ardent fan of Blackpool will concede the seaside town has little in common with Dallas. Any tans you might spot on England’s North-West coast tend to come from bottles rather than hours spent in the golden Texan sunshine. And the only cowboys you’ll find on the golden mile are builders. But soon that could all change. In an extraordinary announcement, gas prospectors have revealed that the Fylde Coast of Lancashire is poised to become the centre of one of the biggest gas drilling operations in Europe.
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The gas field in Lancashire could fill 66,000 Albert Halls
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Around 400 wells could be built across the county
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Certainly, the prospect of exploding areas of rock underneath @placeholder has alarmed critics.