Princeton Hydro is proud to present Emerging Issues: A series of papers authored by our staff regarding relevant environmental issues. Each paper will be released in volumes, so please check in for future releases.
 
 
EMERGING ISSUES Volume 1, No. 1  
The Marcellus Shale: Balancing Energy and Environmental Resource Interests

 
Natural gas is seen as a panacea for a suite of issues ranging from global warming to national security to economic recession. The rationale is that gas is an abundant, domestic fuel source that is cleaner-burning than coal or oil; by shifting to greater reliance on natural gas the US will help mitigate climate change, reduce our energy dependence on unstable regions, and re-kindle American jobs. The Marcellus Shale has the potential to become the largest natural gas producing field in the US.  
 
Pennsylvania is the epicenter of gas drilling activity in the Marcellus Shale right now. In the past two years, more than 700 Marcellus Shale gas wells were completed in Pennsylvania; in the next decade, some predict that more than 10 times that number of new wells will dot the Commonwealth's landscape. In this Emerging Issues post, Princeton Hydro's James Shallenberger provides insight into some economic factors that will ensure that Marcellus Shale gas production occurs while subsequent posts will present information regarding gas production technology, approaches to manage water generated by gas drilling, the environmental regulatory framework, and methods to safeguard environmental resources so that energy production and environmental stewardship are balanced. Marcellus Shale Vol. 1