General Report on the Economics of the Peaceful Uses of Underground Nuclear Explosions

The Plowshare program of the Atomic Energy Commission sets forth to put nuclear explosives to peaceful, economic use. The present report evaluates the major fields of application proposed up to now for such explosives. They are the stimulation of gas and oil reservoirs, production of shale oil, applications to mining, cratering, and a list of various other projects, among them storage of natural gas, waste disposal and water resource management.