Energy Today – July 23, 2013

Mary Schaper
Posted July 23, 2013

AEI Ideas, Carpe Diem Blog – North Dakota Sees Highest Level of Income Mobility in the U.S. Thanks to Bakken Shale

Blogger Mark J. Perry notes another  benefit of shale development in the Bakken: income mobility. Perry connects economic opportunity in the Bakken region with  a new study showing  a significant geographic correlation between a child’s chances of rising from the  the bottom  quintile by family income to the top  income quintile.

Reuters – The Oil Boom's Foreign Policy Dividend

The domestic benefits of the surge in U.S. oil production are well documented, writes Reuters, but the geopolitical benefits are “less well appreciated.” Beginning in 2012, production in the U.S. and Canada grew by nearly 1.3 million barrels per day – outpacing global demand growth. “These developments were critical in allowing the United States to implement new, tougher sanctions in early 2012 that drove year-over-year Iranian crude exports down by nearly 15 percent in the first quarter alone.”

Forbes – Shale Oil and Natural Gas Development Is Heavily Regulated

Contributor David Blackmon notes the states with significant shale development and their strong regulatory regimes to refute the suggestion by some that  the oil and natural gas industry is “an unregulated free for all.”

Syracuse.com – Pro-Hydrofracking Business Groups Blast New York’s Five-Year Moratorium

"For five years New York State has denied struggling Upstate communities the opportunity to benefit from natural gas development while our neighbors have prospered." – Karen  B. Moreau, New York State Petroleum council executive director  

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal – Enough Study, Move Forward on the Keystone XL Pipeline  

In an editorial, the Avalanche-Journal asks why Texas continues to wait for the approval of the pipeline project that would create jobs, economic development and American energy security. “Four years of environmental scrutiny is enough, and the project should be approved in the near future. Let the flow of a new energy source begin as soon as possible.”