Originally thought to be a great harm, hydraulic fracturing, also known as "fracking" does not significantly affect global warming, according to a new study published in Proceeding of National Academies of Science.
The controversial oil retrieval technique, which has contributed to the recent oil and gas boom, is not as bad for the environment National Journal reported.
"It's very good news," Richard Keil, a spokesman for Exxon Mobil told National Journal. "This is a groundbreaking survey. It's the most extensive one that's been done yet, and it serves to add important new evidence that hydraulic fracturing does not contribute to climate change--it does not contribute methane emissions at levels higher than those set by the Environmental Protection Agency."
According to National Journal, other oil and gas companies such as Shell, and Chevron have depended on new developments in the world of fracking technology to discover and unveil massive reserves of domestic oil and natural gas, which were blocked by shale rock.
When hydraulic fracturing is done, shale rock is cracked opened through the injection of sand, water, and chemicals underground. Environmental groups have become fearful about its use because the process can contaminate the water supply under the ground, and release greenhouse gas, methane, which can impact global warming up to 20 times more than carbon dioxide.
Mark Brownstein, associate vice president and chief counsel for the Environmental Defense Fund's United States Climate and Energy program told National Journal, information from the study is the first of its kind.
"This is the first data ever collected from unconventional oil and gas development. With good data, you can make good policy," Brownstein said. "People have rightly raised the issue--is natural gas better for the climate than coal or oil? This is a first step to getting better information to answer that question."
