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Shale gas -- gas that is trapped in tight, brittle layers of rock -- is drawing increased interest from energy companies, as they look to increase domestic production of energy. One energy company's quest is leading them to a national monument of archaeological value in Colorado, a development that has stirred up controversy.
Traditionally, natural gas has been extracted from sandstone and limestone -- porous rock formations that allow the gas to easily flow out. But as the traditional natural gas fields have started to decline, companies have looked more and more to "unconventional" resources like coalbed methane and shale gas.
Shale gas has gained more attention lately because of advances in hydraulic fracturing, whereby companies pump water and other fluids underground to open rock formations and to allow the gas to escape. Directional drilling advances and the rising cost of gas have also made shale gas a more viable resource.
"It is the next big thing," said Steve Schamel of GeoX Consulting.
No one knows how much shale gas there is in the United States, but the Energy Department has estimated that shale gas production will displace coalbed methane by 2025 and account for 11 percent of all the gas produced nationwide.
"It's a resource that's always been there," Schamel said. "It's been known about for quite a while, but no one knew how to extract it [economically] until the last five to 10 years."
"I would anticipate improvements in technology and demand for shale gas to increase," said John Curtis of the Colorado School of Mines.
The nation's most significant shale gas play is the Barnett shale in Texas' Fort Worth Basin, which currently accounts for 80 percent of the shale gas produced nationally, according to Curtis. Other major plays are located throughout the country in Arkansas, Montana, North Dakota Oklahoma and Pennsylvania (see related story).
"A lot of these plays are in the early stages of being delineated, so it's hard to say how big or how small they are," said Vincent Rigatti of Questar.
Even so, Rigatti and many other energy experts believe there is a lot of recoverable resources in the shales.
Canyons of the Ancients
One place Questar is looking at shale gas reserves is in southwest Colorado, but drilling there has created controversy, since some of the biggest potential for shale gas lies within the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument.
Questar and other energy companies own mineral leases that predate the monument's creation in 2000. Approximately 85 percent of the monument is leased for oil and gas, and there is extensive energy development throughout the monument.
Questar applied for two drilling permits inside Canyons of the Ancients National Monument four years ago, but the company and monument staff were not able to agree until recently on a way to allow the company to access the gas resources without disturbing important archaeological and cultural sites. Questar has now agreed to drill in different locations that promise to minimize disturbance to these resources.
Rigatti said the company is in the process of resubmitting its drilling applications and hopes to have the final permit sometime this summer.
He noted that the company has always taken precautions to minimize damage to archaeological sites. "It would be our intention to follow those same principles moving forward," Rigatti said.
That doesn't satisfy Jimbo Buickerood of the San Juan Citizens Alliance, who noted that Canyons of the Ancients contains the highest density of archaeological sites in the country. Buickerood contends that Questar and other energy companies should wait until the monument completes its management plan -- expected as soon as the fall -- before proceeding with drilling activity.
"We really stand strong for protecting the cultural resources and integrity of the monument," Buickerood said. "It's very unique."
Buickerood noted that there is already a lot of energy development taking place in the monument. "We are concerned that the monument is continually becoming more and more of an industrialized place. This is a national monument, but if you drive through, you'll see wells, you'll see compressor stations. It's a little depressing."
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