Post Carbon Fellow David Hughes’ report ‘Drill Baby Drill?‘ published by Post Carbon Institute was cited in this op-ed at the Houston Chronicle.

From the article

All the hype by the fossil fuel industry about energy independence from fracking (hydraulic fracturing) in tight gas reservoirs like the Barnett Shale has left out the costs in energy, water and other essential natural resources.

 

Furthermore, a recent report from thePost Carbon Institute finds that projections for an energy boom from non-conventional fossil fuel sources is not all it’s cracked up to be.

 

The report cites a study by David Hughes, Canadian geologist, who says the low quality of hydrocarbons from bitumen – shale oil and shale gas – do not provide the same energy returns as conventional hydrocarbons due to the energy needed to extract or upgrade them. Hughes also notes that the "new age of energy abundance" forecast by the industry will soon run dry because shale gas and shale oil wells deplete quickly. In fact, the "best fields have already been tapped."

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