A recent series of studies and rebuttals have debated the greenhouse gas impacts of shale gas production as compared to coal. Here, Post Carbon Institute Fellow David Hughes, author of the groundbreaking report, “Will Natural Gas Fuel America in the 21st Century?”, provides an analysis of two conflicting studies. His conclusion: Shale gas is worse […]
These articles are supplements to Will Natural Gas Fuel America in the 21st Century? (2013). They consider how the challenges posed by shale gas production have serious implications for the future of agriculture, transportation, and health in the United States. Summary Agriculture and Natural Gas By Michael Bomford The vast majority of natural gas supporting American […]
In Will Natural Gas Fuel America in the 21st Century?, geoscientist David Hughes (formerly of Geological Survey of Canada) shatters the myth that U.S. natural gas can be a “bridge fuel” from high-carbon sources of energy like coal and oil to a renewable energy future.
The sheer scale of our dependency on nonrenewable, energy-dense “fossilized sunshine” is often lost on those who believe that renewable energy sources can supplant hydrocarbons at anything like today’s level of energy consumption. Thus it is prudent to examine the prognosis for fossil fuels within North America, as they will make up the bulk of […]