Gary Sernovitz leads a double life. A typical New York liberal, he is also an oilman - a fact his left-leaning friends let slide until the word "fracking" entered popular parlance. "How can you frack?" they suddenly demanded, aghast. But for Sernovitz, the real question is, "What happens if we don't?" Fracking has become a four-letter word to environmentalists. But most people don't know what it means. In his fast-paced, funny, and lively book, Sernovitz explains the reality of fracking: what it is, how it can be made safer, and how the oil business works. He also tells the bigger story. Fracking was just one part of a shale revolution that shocked our assumptions about fueling America's future. The revolution has transformed the world with consequences for the oil industry, investors, environmentalists, political leaders, and anyone who lives in areas shaped by the shales, uses fossil fuels, or cares about the climate - in short, everyone. Thanks to American engineers' oilfield innovations, the United States is leading the world in reducing carbon emissions, has sparked a potential manufacturing renaissance, and may soon eliminate its dependence on foreign energy. Once again the largest oil and gas producer in the world, America has altered its balance of power with Russia and the Middle East. Yet the shale revolution has also caused local disruptions and pollution. It has prolonged the world's use of fossil fuels. Is there any way to reconcile the costs with the benefits of fracking? To do so, we must start by understanding fracking and the shale revolution in their totality. The Green and the Black bridges the gap in America's energy education. With an insider's firsthand knowledge and unprecedented clarity, Sernovitz introduces readers to the shales - a history-upturning "Internet of oil" - tells the stories of the shale revolution's essential characters, and addresses all the central controversies. To capture the economic, political, and environmental prizes, we need to adopt a balanced, informed perspective. We need to take the green with the black. Where we go from there is up to us.

After 20 years at different positions in the gas sector, from the policy side to trading floors, the author gives an overview of the major gas issues and elaborates on the consequences of the US shale gas revolution. The first part of the book provides basic knowledge and gives needed tools to better understand this industry, that often stands, in sandwich, between upstream oil and utilities. After extensive research, publication and teaching, the author shares his insights on fundamental issues all along the gas chain and explains the price mechanisms ranging from oil-indexation to spot. The second part looks into the future of worldwide gas balance. To supply growing markets, the major resource holder, Russia, is now in direct competition with the major gas producer, the US. China has the potential not only to select the winner but also to decide the pricing principle for all Asian buyers in 2020. As China is a new and growing gas importer and has a lower price tolerance than historical Asian buyers (Japan and South Korea), it is highly possible that, against basic geography, China selects waterborne US LNG versus close Russian pipe gas, to achieve lower import price. Europe, so risk adverse that it won't be able to take any decision regarding shale gas production on this side of 2020, should see its power fading on the energy scene and would rely more on Russia. Gas geopolitics could tighten Russia stronghold on Europe, on one side, and create a flourishing North America-Asian trade... This book is accessible to ail and will particularly interest readers seeking a global gas perspective where economics and geopolitics mix. It can be read as an economic novel where billions of $ are invested to shape tomorrow energy world or as a geopolitical thriller where Russia and the US compete to impose their respective agenda, leaving China tn select the winner.

The Fossil Fuel Revolution: Shale Gas and Tight Oil describes the remarkable new energy resources being obtained from shale gas and tight oil through a combination of directional drilling and staged hydraulic fracturing, opening up substantial new energy reserves for the 21st Century. The book includes the history of shale gas development, the technology used to economically recover hydrocarbons, and descriptions of the ten primary shale gas resources of the United States. International shale resources, environmental concerns, and policy issues are also addressed. This book is intended as a reference on shale gas and tight oil for industry members, undergraduate and graduate students, engineers and geoscientists. - Provides a cross-cutting view of shale gas and tight oil in the context of geology, petroleum engineering, and the practical aspects of production - Includes a comprehensive description of productive and prospective shales in one book, allowing readers to compare and contrast production from different shale plays - Addresses environmental and policy issues and compares alternative energy resources in terms of economics and sustainability - Features an extensive resource list of peer-reviewed references, websites, and journals provided at the end of each chapter

Over roughly the past decade, oil and gas production in the United States has surged dramatically—thanks largely to technological advances such as high-volume hydraulic fracturing, more commonly known as “fracking.” This rapid increase has generated widespread debate, with proponents touting economic and energy-security benefits and opponents highlighting the environmental and social risks of increased oil and gas production. Despite the heated debate, neither side has a monopoly on the facts. In this book, Daniel Raimi gives a balanced and accessible view of oil and gas development, clearly and thoroughly explaining the key issues surrounding the shale revolution. The Fracking Debate directly addresses the most common questions and concerns associated with fracking: What is fracking? Does fracking pollute the water supply? Will fracking make the United States energy independent? Does fracking cause earthquakes? How is fracking regulated? Is fracking good for the economy? Coupling a deep understanding of the scholarly research with lessons from his travels to every major U.S. oil- and gas-producing region, Raimi highlights stories of the people and communities affected by the shale revolution, for better and for worse. The Fracking Debate provides the evidence and context that have so frequently been missing from the national discussion of the future of oil and gas production, offering readers the tools to make sense of this critical issue.

"This report received a Special Note in the Publication of the Year category at the Prospect Think Tank Awards 2011"--Publisher.

When Fracking Comes to Town traces the response of local communities to the shale gas revolution. Rather than cast communities as powerless to respond to oil and gas companies and their landmen, it shows that communities have adapted their local rules and regulations to meet the novel challenges accompanying unconventional gas extraction through fracking. The multidisciplinary perspectives of this volume's essays tie together insights from planners, legal scholars, political scientists, and economists. What emerges is a more nuanced perspective of shale gas development and its impacts on municipalities and residents. Unlike many political debates that cast fracking in black-and-white terms, this book's contributors embrace the complexity of local responses to fracking. States adapted legal institutions to meet the new challenges posed by this energy extraction process while under-resourced municipal officials and local planning offices found creative ways to alleviate pressure on local infrastructure and reduce harmful effects of fracking on the environment. The essays in When Fracking Comes to Town tell a story of community resilience with the rise and decline of shale gas production. Contributors: Ennio Piano, Ann M. Eisenberg, Pamela A. Mischen, Joseph T. Palka, Jr., Adelyn Hall, Carla Chifos, Teresa Córdova, Rebecca Matsco, Anna C. Osland, Carolyn G. Loh, Gavin Roberts, Sandeep Kumar Rangaraju, Frederick Tannery, Larry McCarthy, Erik R. Pages, Mark C. White, Martin Romitti, Nicholas G. McClure, Ion Simonides, Jeremy G. Weber, Max Harleman, Heidi Gorovitz Robertson

The Promise and the Peril

This final report provides a review and synthesis of available scientific information concerning the relationship between hydraulic fracturing activities and drinking water resources in the United States. The report is organized around activities in the hydraulic fracturing water cycle and their potential to impact drinking water resources. The stages include: (1) acquiring water to be used for hydraulic fracturing (Water Acquisition), (2) mixing the water with chemical additives to prepare hydraulic fracturing fluids (Chemical Mixing), (3) injecting the hydraulic fracturing fluids into the production well to create fractures in the targeted production zone (Well Injection), (4) collecting the wastewater that returns through the well after injection (Produced Water Handling), and (5) managing the wastewater via disposal or reuse methods (Wastewater Disposal and Reuse). EPA found scientific evidence that hydraulic fracturing activities can impact drinking water resources under some circumstances. The report identifies certain conditions under which impacts from hydraulic fracturing activities can be more frequent or severe.

"Argues that obtaining energy through the hydraulic fracturing of shale rock is based on unstable economic foundations, and is having much more destructive effects on the economy and the government of the United States than its advocates claim"--

This book highlights various aspects of shale gas production and discusses the associated problems, which have greatly influenced the current situation on the global gas market. It focuses on issues such as production technologies, environmental protection, and the impacts of shale gas production on human beings. Further, it investigates the role of shale gas in the development and implementation of foreign policy of many nations that welcomed the possibility to produce this hydrocarbon in their own countries. Taking into consideration the information published by world energy research centers, the prospects of shale gas production in different regions of the world are examined in detail. Given its coverage and scope, the book will greatly benefit specialists in the areas of hydrocarbon production, international relations and foreign policy, world economics and technologies, ecology and environmental protection.