Considering Shale Gas Extraction in North Carolina: Lessons from Other States

A new report by Duke University researchers offers several health and environmental measures for North Carolina lawmakers to consider as they debate legalizing horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing for natural gas. The study, which has been accepted for publication in the journal Duke Environmental Law and Policy Forum, looks at potential environmental hazards and how lawmakers in other states are factoring health and environmental risks into regulatory approaches targeting the natural gas extraction method.

See below for links to the current paper, the authors biographies and previous Duke work on hydraulic fracturing.

Current Whitepaper

Considering Shale Gas Extraction in North Carolina: Lessons from Other States

Fact Sheet on the Whitepaper

Hydraulic Fracturing in North Carolina 

Author Bios

Sarah Plikunas
Climate & Energy Associate in Research
Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions

Brooks Rainey Pearson
Policy Counsel 
Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions

Rob Jackson
Nicholas Professor of Global Environmental Change, Associate Dean for Research and Professor of Biology
Nicholas School of the Environment

Jonas Monast
Director, Climate & Energy Program
Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions

Avner Vengosh
Professor in Earth and Ocean Sciences
Nicholas School of the Environment

Previous Work on Hydraulic Fracturing

PNAS Paper: Methane Contamination of Drinking Water Accompanying Gas-Well Drilling and Hydraulic Fracturing

Whitepaper: Research and Policy Recommendations for Hydraulic Fracturing and Shale Gas Extraction