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The black shales of the Appalachian Basin have gained renewed and widespread attention over the last several years. While gas has been produced from the Appalachian Basin for over one hundred years, low recovery had made these source rocks uneconomical to companies in the past. In the last several decades, advances in drilling technology and an increase in demand have renewed interest in the Marcellus Formation as a source of natural gas; however, concerns over the safety of hydraulic fracturing persist. Additionally, debate continues over the conditions that persisted when the Marcellus Formation was deposited, specifically, over the relative importance of primary productivity versus the preservation of organic matter.