“For decades, natural gas has played an important role in electricity generation, industrial uses, and heating in the United States—and with recent improvements in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) of shale formations, drillers can now access a vastly greater amount of gas at lower cost than in the past. The rapid growth in drilling and extraction, however, has resulted in tensions—from the community level to the federal policy level. Questions about the risks and safety of shale gas development continue, even as industry has improved disclosure, shared best practices, and assured the public that hydraulic fracturing techniques are safe. Given these challenges, this year RFF’s Center for Energy Economics and Policy (CEEP) launched an initiative to identify the priority risks associated with shale gas development and recommend strategies for responsible development.”

• Shale Gas: Policy Context – Resources for the Future’s, Center for Energy Economics and Policy (CEEP), Dr. Alan Krupnick, CEEP Director
• Managing the Risks of Shale Gas: Identifying a Pathway toward Responsible Development, Sheila M. Olmstead, Fellow, Resources for the Future
• Fracing: Basics and Concerns Towards a Responsible Policy for the Development of Unconventional Oil and Gas Resources, Prof. Mukul M. Sharma
  Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering, University of Texas at Austin

• Identifying the Sources of Fugitive Methane Associated with Shale Gas Development – Karlis Muehlenbachs, Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta Edmonton, Canada
• Water Quality Issues Associated with Shale-Gas Development, Jim Saiers, Professor of Hydrology and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies