The owners of two Sussex-area companies are blaming the provincial government and anti-shale gas protesters for their decision to shut down their businesses.

Geocam and AWS Energy perform specialized work in the natural gas exploration industry but they are closing their doors.

"It's a punch in the gut to see this happen,” said Terry Smith, a co-owner of the companies.

Smith shows off his slick-line unit — a million-dollar vehicle when it is fully loaded — that is used for recording gas levels underground.

He said he’s had the slick-line unit for a year and it has never been used.

Smith blames anti-shale gas protests for his decision to shut down the companies. But he also has problems with the provincial government, which he said is not helping the industry.

He said he’s worried, for instance, about proposed new regulations, including more environmental assessments, which he believes will stifle exploration.

"Very disappointed about how the government — the Department of Environment — have put up roadblocks and kind of let us down here,” he said.

“This isn't rocket science here. We've been doing it for a lot of years. People just need to have faith. They need to see we have been doing it right and we've done no damage."

Malcolm Reid, another co-owner, was blunt in his assessment of the anti-shale gas protesters.

"These people are just shutting it down for us," he said.

Two years ago, Reid and Smith's companies employed 25 workers.

On Friday, just one employee was on the site, helping to wind things down.

Regulations proposed

Malcolm Reid called the provincial government's proposed natural gas regulations, ridiculous. (CBC)

Natural Resources Minister Bruce Northrup and Environment and Local Government Minister Bruce Fitch proposed 116 different reforms in April.

The changes, if implemented, would ensure more money flows into the provincial coffers and also provide money to property owners and communities where mining activity is taking place.

The proposed changes would also set out strict rules on protecting the environment and natural gas companies would also be hit with higher fines if they break the rules.

Reid said the proposed rules are "ridiculous."

Citizens have until Sept. 18 to file any thoughts on the regulatory proposals.

The provincial government hired Louis LaPierre, a professor emeritus in biology at the University of Moncton, to travel around the province and listen to citizens' views on the proposals.

The provincial government has been facing criticism over the issue of shale gas exploration in the last year.

Many groups and citizens have specifically opposed the contentious mining practice of hydraulic fracturing, or hydro-fracking.

Hydro-fracking is a process where exploration companies inject a mixture of water, sand and chemicals into the ground, creating cracks in shale rock formations. That process allows companies to extract natural gas from areas that would otherwise go untapped.

Opponents of the process say it could have a negative effect on local water supplies and many of them have held protests across the province.