There may be no more decisive environmental issue in America today than hydrofracking, or 'fracking' as it is commonly called, referring to the use of highly pressurized water and chemicals to extract gas trapped in subterranean shale formations. Opponents decry its pollution of water, ground, and air, and lament the lack of oversight in the industry. Proponents argue that it has created jobs, spurred industry, lowered carbon emissions, and provided an economic boon to many communities across the country, including some of the poorest. The fight is highly polarized, with 'fracktivists' pressuring Washington to put restrictions in place and advocates touting energy independence and the environmental benefits of replacing coal with natural gas. In this book the author explains the basics of hydraulic fracking, considers the economic and political benefits, and explores concerns about health dangers and damage to the environment. Stepping back from the impassioned debate, he offers an introduction to one of the country's most contentious issues. -- From back cover.

A twenty-first century bonanza --Hydrofracking: What, How, and Where? -- Energy in context: a fossil fuel primer. What are fossil fuels? -- What is coal? -- What are oil and gasoline? -- What is natural gas? -- Why is natural gas called a "bridge fuel"? -- What are "unconventional" fuels? -- What is shale gas? -- What is tight gas? -- What is sour gas? -- What is shale oil? -- What is oil shale? -- What are tar sands? -- What is coal bed methane? -- What is coal gasification? -- What is synfuel? -- What -- So what is hydrofracking, and why has it become so central to the energy landscape? -- What is hydrofracking used for? -- What is the history of hydrofracking? -- Who was the determined tinkerer? -- How -- How do we hydrofracture a well? -- How do horizontal wells differ from vertical wells? -- What are hydrofracking fluids? -- Where -- What are shale plays, and where are the major shale plays in the United States? -- Where is hydrofracking restricted? -- Is hydrofracking taking place outside of the United States? Introduction -- Energy in the 21st Century -- Fracking Basics -- Fracking Today -- Fracking Pros and Cons -- Fracking Tomorrow -- Conclusion. Part II. Hydrofracking: the Debate -- The case for hydrofracking -- Who benefits? -- What is the impact of shale oil and gas on the U.S. economy? -- How many jobs does hydrofracking create? -- How has supply affect the price of natural gas? -- How has cheap gas impacted the petrochemical industry? -- How have chemical companies been affected by natural gas prices? -- What is the "halo effect" of gas prices on other industries? -- What are the nonindustrial benefits of hydrofracking? -- How has the natural gas bonanza affected foreign investment in the United States? -- How do new shale-gas supplies affect the global energy market? -- How will this affect transportation? -- What impact has hydrofracking had on water supplies? -- What is the Halliburton Loophole, and how do drillers respond to the charge that it conceals the chemicals used in hydrofracking? -- How has hydrofracking affected global warming? -- The case against hydrofracking -- What questions about hydrofracking need to be asked and answered, according to opponents? -- What are the biggest concerns in terms of water supplies? -- Does fracking deplete aquifers? -- Does hydrofracking contaminate groundwater? -- How well regulated is groundwater? -- What is methane migration? -- Are the chemicals in hydrofracking fluids harmful? -- How is flowback disposed of? -- Can flowback be radioactive? -- What are injection wells? -- Does hydrofracking cause earthquakes? -- What are "fugitive emissions"? -- What are the consequences of fugitive emissions? -- Why are reports about health impacts mostly anecdotal? -- Is anyone studying how hydrofracking impacts animal and human health? -- Can the gap between hydrofracking's proponents and opponents be bridged? -- Part III. Hydrofracking: Today and Tomorrow. The future of fracking -- How much gas and oil is there in American shale deposits? -- How political has hydrofracking become? -- How is hydrofracking being regulated? -- What steps are drillers taking to conserve water? -- What are "green completions"? -- How has the business of hydrofracking evolved? -- What technical innovations are on the horizon? -- What are "tracers," and how are they changing? -- How are citizens harnessing big data to track fracking? -- What are Federal regulators doing to improve the environmental safety of fracking? -- Will cars of the future run on natural gas? -- Can hydrofracking help China, the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, reduce its carbon footprint? -- Beyond hydrofracking -- What are "renewables," and how might they affect greenhouse gas emissions? -- How does the low price of natural gas affect renewables, and how can renewables succeed? -- Fracking is here to stay: how will we respond? -- List of chemicals used in hydrofracking.