Eastern oil shales are an important U.S. energy resource, with an estimated potential exceeding 400 billion barrels of oil in place and perhaps extending to as much as 2,600 barrels, including both surface and deep deposits. With a location in the heart of the industrial east, which assures a market for the product, the infrastructure and transportation systems are already largely in place. With a generally favorable political climate, plentiful water supply, shale deposits located on privately-held land, and a substantial part of the resource easily accessible by conventional strip mining techniques, this resource appears ready for exploitation.