"These may be of interest to the Collective. (Sourced via FT)

"Why the Bakken Won't Save Our Bacon, By Steve Andrews and Randy
Udall (April 26th)

"195 Californias or 74 Texases to Replace Offshore Oil by Chris Nelder (May 31st)

"Obviously written from the peak oil viewpoint, but soberly and factually argued."

Eoin Treacy's view The environmental dangers of offshore drilling have become a front-page, emotive issue and not without good reason. However, despite a backlash against the energy sector and calls for much tighter regulation and an outright ban from some quarters, the economic reality is that the USA simply cannot afford to do without Gulf of Mexico supply. Wind and Solar are expensive and take time to build and domestic onshore oil production is not capable of taking over from the Gulf, which leaves the further exploitation of unconventional natural gas as a common sense alternative.

Shale, tight and sand gas do not come without their own environmental concerns which will need to be addressed if the sector is to fulfill its significant medium to longer-term potential. This report by Daniel J. Soeder and William M. Kappel for the US Geological Survey offers a balanced explanation of how water resources will have to be managed if the industry is to flourish. It is well worth a read for anyone interested in the sector. A keyword search using "shale" as the search parameter will provide a great deal more on this subject.