shale gas

communities/shutterstock

With fracking already underway in 30 states and advancing at a breakneck speed, safeguards have not been adequate to protect communities, public health or the environment.[read more]

“America is too dependent on foreign oil” is a frequent refrain of American politicians and policymakers with an agenda. Now, it seems possible that the immense new discoveries of American shale gas and its liquid twin “tight oil” may be able to displace these imports. But is this realistic?[read more]

what of future energy needs?

 

If carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are to stop increasing, then nearly all of oue future energy consumption must come from technologies that produce zero emissions.[read more]

California Energy

California? It used to be mentioned in the same breath as oil giants Texas and Alaska, but oil production is down 21 percent since 2001 and it has slipped out of the top-three tier of oil-producing states.[read more]

shale gas

Sonja van Renssen, leading environment journalist for viEUws - the EU Policy Broadcaster, provides a story on the future of an EU Shale Gas Policy, with an overview of how the US is conducting its own shale gas policy.[read more]

US CO2 emissions

The policy lesson is obvious—real and lasting reductions in CO2 come from economy-wide policy effects, not from the current transient boom in the US natural gas market.[read more]

Abandoned Oil Rig via Shutterstock

While climate concerns may dominate for some, it seems fair to say that the most contentious aspect of the shale gas revolution is related to fears over high water demands and contamination risks posed by hydraulic fracturing, i.e. “fracking”. I want to concentrate on two intertwined issues here, namely water pollution risks and property rights.[read more]

EU shale development

As a result of the unconventional oil and gas revolution, American states have been updating their regulatory frameworks to include new measures to protect groundwater and reduce air emissions.[read more]

arabian desert/shutterstock

As if the economics of shale gas development weren't challenging enough in such an environment, the key ingredient that has fueled the US shale revolution, water, is in short supply in Saudi Arabia.[read more]

shale gas collaboration

 

Whether the collaborative will produce meaningful advances in production practices remains unknown. But the center's formation is a significant step toward much-needed political and social pragmatism in shale development.[read more]

Over the last five years, the rise of shale gas has been the single major event in the world of energy to have a lasting impression for years to come. In recent years new studies and discoveries in other parts of the world have been changing the global energy landscape.[read more]

Natural Gas end-use

So, what do New York’s old and leaky pipes have to do with the claimed emissions reductions due to shale gas? Precisely zero. Here’s why.[read more]

shale gas/shutterstock

While this reduced air pollution is an unmitigated good, the long-term climate benefits of this historic coal-to-gas shift hinge on the ability to control the amount of methane leaking from gas wells and pipelines.[read more]

Shale Gas Drilling via Shutterstock

There is widespread agreement that shale gas played a major role in bringing U.S. carbon emissions to a historic twenty-year low in 2012. This should not come as a surprise given that gas-fired power plants emit about half the CO2 per MWh compared to their coal-based cousins. However, some worry that these climate gains are being undermined by increased coal exports to Europe. How justified are these fears?[read more]

fracking/shutterstock

The fracking obsession has spread to all corners of the globe. Other areas currently dabbling in this technique or contemplating the idea include Denmark, Australia, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Poland.[read more]