ABSTRACT
Modern society and industry use large amounts of oil and gasoline. Extensive reserves of these fuels are found in permafrost areas in the Northern Hemisphere including Alaska, Canada, and Russia (Figure 15.1). Furthermore, offshore continental shelves around the Arctic Basin and along the northwestern coasts of Norway have important gas and petroleum fields. The oil can be retrieved relatively easily whereas the gas, primarily in the form of gas hydrates, has proven difficult to obtain safely.
