The American Bar Association (ABA) has published a book intended to be an information resource on hydraulic fracturing (fracking) for lawyers, policymakers and citizens alike.

Edited by Erica Levine Powers and Beth Kinne, “Beyond the Fracking Wars: A Guide for Lawyers, Public Officials, Planners and Citizens” is a compendium of the legal, regulatory, social and technical aspects of fracking.

Mark Lapping, a planning/public policy professor at the University of Southern Maine, praised the book as “staying above the fray,” providing comprehensive information for stakeholders in the ongoing public debate on fracking. Bruce Kramer, an energy/land-use scholar at Texas Tech University, called the book a “must-read.”

Organized in four parts, the ABA fracking book gives a technology overview of shale oil/gas development and its complex legal structure; a review of legal issues at the federal, state and local levels; a series of case studies; and a broad-based discussion of the critical issues tied to fracking on an international level.

ABA is touting the book for government lawyers, landowners, public officials and oil/gas industry professionals, along with citizens and environmental activists.