A report expected to give the green light for shale gas extraction in the Netherlands is set to be published later on Monday, according to media reports.

The contents of the report were leaked by RTL news on Friday and state the process of extracting gas from shale rock deep under the ground – is safe.

Economic affairs minister Henk Kamp is expected to meet representatives of the the three areas chosen for test drilling – Haaren, Boxtel and Noordoostpolder, later on Monday. All three local councils are strongly against the being used as testing grounds.

Environmental group Milieudefensie said on Friday the report is a ‘sloppy, rushed job’, which had been pieced together from existing publications and is not geared to the Dutch situation.

Shale gas is ordinary natural gas that has been trapped in dense shale beds deep underground. It is extracted using a controversial process known as fracking, which involves drilling a hole deep into the shale and pumping in water mixed with sand and chemicals.