WASHINGTON ( CNN ) -- Today 's technology could extract enough untapped natural gas , frozen in Alaska 's North Slope , to heat millions of homes for years , federal officials announced Wednesday . A U.S. Geological Survey study says there is much natural gas to be tapped from frozen areas in Alaska . An estimated 85.4 trillion cubic feet of `` undiscovered , technically recoverable gas '' is frozen in the state 's North Slope region , according to a U.S. Geological Survey study released by the Interior Department . The deposits could heat more than 100 million homes for a decade , the study says . `` The assessment points to a truly significant potential for natural gas hydrates to contribute to the energy mix of the United States and the world , '' said Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne . `` This study also brings us closer to realizing the potential of this clean-burning natural gas resource . '' However , the study warned that further research is needed to determine the long-term impacts of the natural gas hydrates -- essentially methane gas trapped in ice . While natural gas is a fossil fuel that emits carbon dioxide , tapping into the gas hydrates assessed in the study is not expected to affect global warming , said Brenda Pierce , coordinator for the USGS Energy Resources Program . `` There is some near-surface gas hydrate , '' she said Wednesday . But , `` these are fairly deeper and fairly well-buffered by the sediment and strata above . '' The natural gas released from the depositing would go straight into a pipeline , not the atmosphere , she said . While the existence of frozen natural gas deposits -- especially in the Arctic region -- has been known for years , the USGS study is the first estimate of recoverable natural gas hydrates with current technology . The North Slope natural gas hydrates make up 11.5 percent of the volume of gas within all other undiscovered , technically recoverable gas resources in the United States -- frozen or not , the USGS estimated . Separately , in August , Alaska Gov . Sarah Palin , the former GOP vice presidential candidate , signed a bill allowing TransCanada Alaska to build a 1,715-mile natural gas pipeline from the North Slope 's Prudhoe Bay to Alberta , Canada . During the McCain-Palin campaign , Palin 's success in finalizing plans for a gas line was a benchmark that her supporters said represented her ability to work across party lines . In the study released Wednesday , researchers suggest extracting the natural gas hydrates with `` depressurization '' -- a method that involves changing the ice into gas and water at the surface . The study area extends from the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska on the west and through the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on the east . The latter is a 19 million-acre strip in northeastern Alaska , where oil exploration has long been prohibited by Congress . USGS Director Mark Myers said the gas hydrates research has been going on for more than 25 years . `` This is especially important now that a growing body of evidence indicates that concentrated gas hydrate accumulations ... such as those in Northern Alaska , can be produced with existing technology , '' he said . CNN 's Samira Simone contributed to this report .
U.S. Geological Survey study looks at recovering natural gas deposits . Study : 85.4 trillion cubic feet of gas frozen in Alaska 's North Slope . Source : http://www.usgs.gov/edu/~r/USGS_Energy/Geological%20Resources/Publications/GSR_2009.pdf