1. NATURAL GAS:
U.S. fracking regulation won't halt 'shale gale' -- report

HOUSTON -- Federal regulation of fracturing would have little effect on companies' ability to drill for shale gas, according to a new study by an energy analysis firm. But analysts also found a regulatory expansion is not needed to protect drinking water. "Drinking water supplies appear to have been safeguarded from contamination" by state regulators, says an executive summary of the report authored by Daniel Yergin, chairman of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates and the well-known author of "The Prize," a Pulitzer Prize-winning history of the oil business. Go to story #1