Construction Research Congress 2020
How Induced Seismicity Impacts Community Perceptions of Oil and Gas Development
Publication: Construction Research Congress 2020: Project Management and Controls, Materials, and Contracts
ABSTRACT
In the central United States, the frequency of earthquakes has risen significantly in the past decade. Many scientists have argued that these earthquakes are induced by injecting vast quantities of salty wastewater, a byproduct of oil and natural gas production via hydraulic fracturing, deep underground. Because of the connection to oil and gas production, these earthquakes may influence people’s perceptions of the petroleum industry, including the effect the industry has on their community and whether they support or oppose hydraulic fracturing. This work presents the results of a household survey conducted in four geographic regions across Oklahoma and Colorado that have significant levels of oil and gas production and varying levels of recent human-induced earthquakes. Our results show that earthquakes impact views of oil and gas development; specifically, the more negative of an impact that the earthquakes have on an individual’s life, the more negative the individual perceives the impacts of oil and gas development in their community and the less they support hydraulic fracturing generally. As our petroleum infrastructure is expanded it will be crucial for managers and planners to account for both the risks posed by induced seismicity as well as the public’s response to these new developments.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The material presented is based in part on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1520846. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Construction Research Congress 2020: Project Management and Controls, Materials, and Contracts
Pages: 241 - 248
Editors: David Grau, Ph.D., Arizona State University, Pingbo Tang, Ph.D., Arizona State University, and Mounir El Asmar, Ph.D., Arizona State University
ISBN (Online): 978-0-7844-8288-9
Copyright
© 2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published online: Nov 9, 2020
Published in print: Nov 9, 2020
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