NOVA · Season 7 · Episode 12

“Do We Really Need the Rockies?”

Aired Wednesday 29 October 1980

Locked in the shale of the Western Rocky Mountains is more oil than in the Middle East—more than enough to solve our dependence on foreign crude oil. But will shale oil solve our gasoline shortage, or will it simply turn the Rockies into a gigantic industrial zone? NOVA explores the promise and the problems of shale oil.

S7 E12 discussion