RAPID: Social and Behavioral Aspects of the West Virginia Chemical Spill and Water Crisis

2014年1月9日，西弗吉尼亚州查尔斯顿的自由工业公司从储罐中泄漏了6000至7500加仑的化学品，其中包括4-甲基环己烷乙醇(MCHM)，其中一部分不详地流入了麋鹿河。1月21日，星期二，被确定在“泄漏的液体”中也有大约7.3%的乙二醇醚(称为PPH；丙二醇苯醚)。在任何人收到化学品泄漏的通知之前，泄漏是在查尔斯顿西弗吉尼亚美国水务的主要水源取水口。在发现污染后，该州对西弗吉尼亚州9个县(占西弗吉尼亚州人口的15%)的30万人发布了“请勿使用令”。“请勿使用令”的意思是不要喝水，也不要用水洗澡、做饭或洗衣服！从本质上说，这些水的作用就是冲厕所。在接下来的两周里，州政府、环境保护部、西弗吉尼亚州美国水务公司和自由工业公司向受影响地区的居民提供了相互冲突的命令和巨大的信息缺口。结果是，人们普遍不信任任何本应帮助个人恢复的信息。这项研究项目将作为对化学品泄漏造成的公共安全紧急情况的快速反应。科研团队发现，居民和官员之间的关系充其量是紧张的，在最坏的情况下是严重受损的，指导他们如何应对水危机。这使得从化学品泄漏中恢复过来，无论是为了供水系统，还是为了公众的健康和安全。该项目的目标是辨别政府官员和新闻媒体的言辞失误，这些失误如何影响一个历史上被煤矿、木材和化学工业开采的民族，以及政府对这些行业的监管不足以确保公众健康和安全，以及这些言辞如何在短期和长期继续危害公众。拟议的项目将：1)对受影响地区的居民、科学家、政治家和新闻媒体记者进行定性的视频和音频采访；2)结合修辞和语篇分析来解读收集到的数据；3)确定公众如何解读官方信息；4)将这些事件及其公众对它们的接受置于阿巴拉契亚地区身份认同的更大背景下；5)为阿巴拉契亚地区的区域修辞认同理论做出贡献；6)在西弗吉尼亚州公共卫生和安全突发事件期间提供公共关系协议。该项目将利用一个难得的机会分析西弗吉尼亚州人对公共卫生和安全突发事件的反应，而当官员滥用他们的信任，国家媒体淡化或忽视事件的重要性时，公共卫生和安全突发事件只会恶化。利用这项研究的结果，PI将：1)在阿巴拉契亚研究协会会议上展示研究结果；2)向《阿巴拉契亚研究杂志》提交一篇研究论文；3)将这项研究用于一篇题为《阿巴拉契亚认同的区域修辞方法》的论文；4)在数字媒体写作课程Engl 2269中教授学生如何有效地利用社交媒体进行数字激进主义；5)继续使用项目参与者在西弗吉尼亚州水危机博客上发布的收集到的数据，该博客开展激进主义工作，分享信息，收集资源，并组织人们采取行动；6)制作一部关于危机以及官方和公众对危机的反应的已在进行中的纪录片；7)为其他研究小组对这一事件的科学报道贡献一份社会和行为分析。

Moss1430133On January 9, 2014, Freedom Industries in Charleston, West Virginia spilled somewhere between 6,000 and 7,500 gallons of chemicals, including 4-methylcyclohexanemethanol (MCHM), from their storage tanks, an unknown portion of which then flowed into the Elk River. On Tuesday, January 21, it was determined that there about 7.3 % glycol ethers (known a PPh; propylene glycol phenyl ether) in the "leaked fluids," as well. Before anyone was notified of the chemical spill, it was at the intake of the main water source for West Virginia American Water in Charleston. After discovering the contamination, the State issued "A Do Not Use Order" for 300,000 people in 9 counties of West Virginia (15 % of the population of West Virginia). A "Do Not Use Order" means not to drink the water, and not to use the water for bathing or showering, cooking or clothes washing! Essentially, all that the water was good for is flushing the toilet. Over the next two weeks, residents of the affected areas were presented with conflicting orders and large gaps in information by the State government, The Department of Environmental Protection, West Virginia American Water, and Freedom Industries. The results were widespread distrust of any of the information that was supposed to assist individuals in recovery.This research project will serve as a RAPID response to the public safety emergency created by the chemical spill. Scientific research teams have found the relationship between the residents and officials guiding them how to respond to the water crisis strained at best and severely damaged at worst. This makes recovery from the chemical spill, both for the water system and the public's health and safety. The project goal is to discern the rhetorical missteps on the part of public officials and the news media, how those missteps influenced a people historically exploited by coal mining, timber, and chemical industries as well as governmental regulations of these industries insufficient to ensure public health and safety, and how these rhetorics contribute to continue the endangerment of the public both in the immediate and long-term. The proposed project will:1) conduct qualitative video and audio interviews with residents in the affected areas, scientists, politicians, and news media journalists;2) use a combination of rhetorical and discourse analysis to interpret the data collected;3) determine how official messages were interpreted by the public;4) place these events and the public reception of them within the larger context of identity in Appalachia;5) contribute to a theory of regional rhetorical identity in Appalachia;6) provide a protocol to public relations during public health and safety emergencies in West Virginia.This project will use a rare opportunity to analyze the reaction of West Virginians to a public health and safety emergency that was only worsened when officials abused their trust and the national media downplayed or ignored the event's significance. Using the findings of the research the PI will:1) present results at the Appalachian Studies Association Conference;2) submit a research paper to the Appalachian Studies Journal;3) use the research for a dissertation, titled "A Regional Rhetorical Approach to Identity in Appalachia;"4) teach students in the Digital Media Composition course, ENGL 2269, how to effectively leverage social media for digital activism;5) continue using collected data released by project participants on the West Virginia Water Crisis blog that does activist work to share information, gather resources, and organize people to take action;6) create an already in-progress documentary on the crisis and official and public responses to it;7) contribute a social and behavioral analysis to the scientific reporting on the event from the other research teams.