Job Boom From Shale Gale

Abstract

Inexpensive natural gas from shale will not only bring big profits to U.S. chemical makers but will also be a boon to local communities where future chemical plant workers will live and shop, creating more than a half-million new jobs overall. That’s the conclusion of a new study by the American Chemistry Council, a trade association of chemical companies. The job numbers seem reasonable, says Terry L. Clower, director of the Center for Economic Development & Research at the University of North Texas, who reviewed the study for C&EN. Natural gas companies have learned to exploit shale by using sometimes controversial techniques such as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. The new gas has rejuvenated the U.S. chemical industry with cheap feedstocks, making the U.S. one of the world’s most economically advantageous places to build petrochemical and polymer chemical plants. To quantify the impact of new investment on the broader economy, ...