Hydraulic fracturing--or fracking as its commonly known--involves drilling for natural gas by injecting a mixture or water, sand, and chemicals into the ground.
It's a controversial practice, both here in Michigan and across the country.
The industry and supporters say fracking is a job creator and a move toward energy independence.
But many environmentalists say it puts human health and local ecosystems at risk.
Since 2012, a team of researchers at the University of Michigan's Graham Sustainability Institutehave been looking into fracking in Michigan.
On Friday, they released areportlooking at options for regulating the burgeoning industry.
To learn more about the report, Current State talks to John Callewaert [CAL-uh-wurt], director of the Integrated Assessment Center at the Institute, who explains that while fracking has started getting a lot of attention in the past few years, it's actually been around in Michigan since the 1990s.