In NE Utah, just across from Colorado, the Estonian company Enefit American Oil is trying to"squeeze oil from a stone." Oil shale, not to be confused with shale gas -a major American industry - has never been successfully exploited in the US, but it has a track record in Estonia: high carbon emissions, contaminated water, dirty air, poisoned farmland and heaps of mining waste so large they're nicknamed the Estonian Alps. The consequences of oil shale mining in the Colorado River Basin where water is our most precious resource are similarly huge. The waters here are a legacy that we must safeguard. The Obama administration, a climate leader, now has a chance to cement that leadership. Decisively shaping oil shale regulation can be a key part of the president’s climate legacy. There are reasonable steps that could bring the Obama administration’s wise approach to oil shale to fruition."
At www.nytimes.com
