A Feb. 2013 scientific study found an unexpectedly high methane leakage rate in the well-fractured Utah basin. Photo of Utah gas field credit According to a spate of recent scientific studies from the United States and Australia, the shale gas industry has generated another formidable challenge: methane and radon leakage three times greater than expected. In some cases the volume of seeping methane, a greenhouse gas that traps heat 25 times more effectively than carbon dioxide, is so high it challenges the notion that shale gas can be a bridge to a cleaner energy future, as promoted by the government of British Columbia and other shale gas jurisdictions. “If natural gas is to be a ‘bridge’ to a more sustainable energy future, it is a bridge that must be traversed carefully,” warned one 2014 study published in Science. “Diligence will be required to ensure that leakage rates are […]