Document Type
Conference Proceeding
Event Date
2-5-2010
Description
Presenter: Benjamin Harding, Principal Engineer, AMEC Earth and Environmental
15 slides
Moderator
Doug Kenney
Citation Information
Harding, Benjamin, "SLIDES: Energy Development Water Needs Assessment and Water Supply Alternatives and Analysis" (2010). The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5).
https://scholar.law.colorado.edu/promise-and-peril-of-oil-shale-development/8
Included in
Administrative Law Commons, Climate Commons, Energy and Utilities Law Commons, Energy Policy Commons, Environmental Health and Protection Commons, Environmental Law Commons, Environmental Policy Commons, Geotechnical Engineering Commons, Land Use Law Commons, Natural Resource Economics Commons, Natural Resources Law Commons, Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons, Oil, Gas, and Energy Commons, Oil, Gas, and Mineral Law Commons, President/Executive Department Commons, Public Policy Commons, Science and Technology Law Commons, State and Local Government Law Commons, Water Law Commons, Water Resource Management Commons
Comments
The largest known oil shale deposits in the world are in the Green River Formation, which covers portions of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. Fully one-half of the world’s oil shale lies within 150 miles of Grand Junction, Colorado, and about 80% of these reserves are on federal land. Estimates of recoverable reserves in the Green River Formation range from 500 billion to 1.53 trillion barrels. At present consumption rates, this is enough oil to satisfy 100% of U.S. demand for well over 100 years.
Development of oil shale could cause significant impacts on the Colorado Plateau. It would provide for a major economic boom, but the costs to the environment and to the rural communities of the West will be considerable and potentially irrevocable.
This event will engage the various stakeholders and interested parties in a discussion of various proposals to develop oil shale in western Colorado. A full-day program will address the myriad issues involved including the technology, economics, politics, and environmental impacts. We hope to compile and publish a compendium of materials from the proposed conference and from other sources that will help the public and policy-makers alike understand the key issues surrounding the various proposed actions for oil shale development.