Shale is scattered throughout the United States. The two hottest shale sites in America right now are the Barnett Shale in Texas and the Marcellus shale, which is buried beneath seven states and part of Lake Erie. Other large shale deposits are located in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Wyoming.

 

Despite its potential, though, a movement has welled up lately to block the shale gas boom. Some critics say embracing natural gas so heartily will slow the rise of renewable energy, but the biggest beef with shale isn't as much about its gas — it's about how we get it out of the ground. Shale gas would likely still be a novelty fuel without modern advances in hydraulic fracturing, yet the need for fracking is also starting to seem like it could be shale's fatal flaw. The practice has sparked major environmental and public heath concerns near U.S. gas fields, from diesel fuel and unidentified chemicals in groundwater to methane seeping out of sink faucets and even blowing up houses.

 

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