J. DAVID HUGHES A REALITY CHECK ON THE MONTEREY SHALE
CALIFORNIA
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A Reality Check on the Monterey Shale
By J. David Hughes December 2013
Visit
montereyoil.org
for more information and related resources. About the Author
J. David Hughes is a geoscientist who has studied the energy resources of Canada for nearly four decades, including 32 years with the Geological Survey of Canada as a scientist and research manager. He developed the National Coal Inventory to determine the availability and environmental constraints associated with Canada’s coal resources. As Team Leader for Unconventional Gas on the Canadian Gas Potential Committee, he coordinated the recent publication of a comprehensive assessment of Canada’s unconventional natural gas potential. Over the past decade, Mr. Hughes has researched, published, and lectured widely on global energy and sustainability issues in North America and internationally. In 2011, Mr. Hughes authored a series of papers on the production potential and environmental impacts of U.S. natural gas. In early 2013, he released
Drill, Baby, Drill: Can Unconventional Fuels Usher in a New Era of Energy Abundance?
, which takes a far-ranging and painstakingly researched look at the prospects for various unconventional fuels to provide energy abundance for the United States in the 21st century. While the report examines a range of energy sources, the centerpiece of
Drill, Baby, Drill
is a critical analysis of shale gas and tight oil (shale oil) and the potential of a shale “revolution.” Mr. Hughes is president of Global Sustainability Research, a consultancy dedicated to research on energy and sustainability issues. He is also a board member of Physicians, Scientists & Engineers for Healthy Energy (PSE Healthy Energy) and the Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas – Canada, and is a Fellow of the Post Carbon Institute. Mr. Hughes recently contributed to
Carbon Shift
, an anthology edited by Thomas Homer-Dixon on the twin issues of peak energy and climate change, and his work has been featured in
Nature
,
Canadian Business
, and other journals, as well as through the popular press, radio, and television.
About Post Carbon Institute
Post Carbon Institute builds resilience by providing individuals, communities, businesses, and governments with the resources needed to understand and respond to the interrelated economic, energy, environmental, and equity crises that define the 21st century.
postcarbon.org
About Physicians Scientists & Engineers for Healthy Energy
As a team of leading scientists, engineers, and health professionals, PSE Healthy Energy brings scientific transparency to important energy policy issues and energy choices. PSE Healthy Energy generates, translates, and disseminates scientific information on the climate, public health, and environmental dimensions of oil and gas production, the transition to renewable energy portfolios, and other novel forms of energy production.
psehealthyenergy.org
Acknowledgments
Thanks to Asher Miller and Daniel Lerch of Post Carbon Institute and Seth Shonkoff of Physicians Scientists & Engineers for Healthy Energy for editing and reviewing the report, and to John Van Hoesen of Green Mountain College for designing and producing the maps.
Drilling California: A Reality Check on the Monterey Shale
By J. David Hughes In association with Post Carbon Institute and Physicians Scientists & Engineers for Healthy Energy Copyright © 2013 by J. David Hughes. All rights reserved. Published December 2013. For reprint requests and other inquiries, please contact Post Carbon Institute, 613 Fourth St., Suite 208, Santa Rosa, California, 95404
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