COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: OIL AND GAS SITING, HOUSING CHOICES, AND STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

合作研究：石油和天然气选址、住房选择和利益相关者参与

• 批准号: 1949046
• 负责人: Benjamin Gilbert
• 金额: $ 16.84万
• 依托单位: Colorado School of Mines
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-06-01 至 2024-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1949046&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: COLLABORATIVE; RESEARCH; OIL; GAS; SITING

All people deserve equal protection from environmental risks and equal opportunities to participate in decision making processes that affect local environmental and health outcomes. This project assesses the extent to which these principles are being met in the context of oil and gas development in Colorado. The boom in unconventional oil and gas (O&G) development in Colorado, and many other states, has yielded both benefits and risks for communities. Horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (aka “fracking” or “fracing”) has changed the geography of US energy production by increasing the intensity of extractive activities and infrastructure and bringing them closer to more people than ever before. This project assesses whether or not the distribution of risks and benefits from O&G development has been equitable, and why (or why not). In April 2019, public concern over these issues led to policy changes in Colorado that increased local involvement with O&G decisions. This research project examines the implications of this policy innovation and draws lessons for other states considering similar legislation. As the U.S. energy landscape changes and debates on this issue continue across the country, protecting the nation’s health requires understanding how communities are affected and who gets to take part in the decisions surrounding O&G development. Our team is committed to maximizing the broader academic and policy impacts of our research through collaborative relationships with other researchers, local and state-level decision makers, and members of the public.This project makes conceptual, methodological, and empirical contributions to the study of patterns and processes in the context of O&G development. The conceptual framework demonstrates how patterns of proximity to O&G development result from decision and policy processes involving many actors at varying scales. The research team uses this framework to address the following questions: 1) Are socially disadvantaged groups more likely to be closer to O&G development? 2) Are there disparities in information about O&G risks and benefits between socially advantaged and disadvantaged groups that could affect choices about housing and policy participation? 3) Does increased local involvement in energy development lead to improved processes and policy outcomes? To answer the first question, the team analyzes large geospatial data sets to assess the distribution of O&G impacts, triangulating between multiple data sets and analyses at different levels of spatial aggregation to assess how these methodological choices affect results. The second question is addressed using a household survey in purposefully selected Colorado case study sites. The project investigates the third question with a mixed-methods analysis of local decision maker surveys, policy documents,and interviews focusing specifically on policy and rule-making changes following the April 2019 passage of SB-181, which increased local involvement in O&G activities. This policy shift creates a natural experiment to examine effects on stakeholder engagement and outcomes.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

所有人都应得到平等的保护，免受环境风险的影响，并享有平等的机会参与影响当地环境和健康结果的决策过程。本项目评估这些原则在科罗拉多石油和天然气开发中得到满足的程度。在科罗拉多和其他许多州，非常规石油和天然气（O G）开发的繁荣为社区带来了好处和风险。水平钻井和水力压裂（又名“水力压裂”或“压裂”）通过增加采掘活动和基础设施的强度并使其比以往任何时候都更接近更多的人，改变了美国能源生产的地理位置。本项目评估O G开发的风险和收益分配是否公平，以及为什么（或为什么不）。2019年4月，公众对这些问题的关注导致科罗拉多的政策变化，增加了当地对O G决策的参与。该研究项目探讨了这一政策创新的影响，并为考虑类似立法的其他州吸取了经验教训。随着美国能源格局的变化和全国各地对这一问题的辩论继续进行，保护国家的健康需要了解社区如何受到影响，以及谁可以参与O G发展的决策。我们的团队致力于通过与其他研究人员，地方和州一级的决策者和公众成员的合作关系，最大限度地扩大我们的研究的更广泛的学术和政策影响。该项目使概念，方法和经验的贡献，在O G发展的背景下的模式和过程的研究。概念框架表明，如何接近O G发展的模式，从决策和政策过程中涉及到许多不同规模的行为体。研究小组利用这一框架来解决以下问题：1）社会弱势群体是否更有可能接近O G发展？2)社会弱势群体和弱势群体之间在关于OG风险和利益的信息方面是否存在差异，这可能影响对住房和政策参与的选择？3)地方更多地参与能源开发是否会导致进程和政策成果的改善？为了回答第一个问题，该团队分析了大型地理空间数据集，以评估O G影响的分布，在多个数据集之间进行三角测量，并在不同的空间聚合水平上进行分析，以评估这些方法选择如何影响结果。第二个问题是解决使用家庭调查有目的地选择科罗拉多的案例研究网站。该项目调查了第三个问题，对当地决策者调查，政策文件和访谈进行了混合方法分析，重点关注2019年4月通过SB-181后的政策和规则制定变化，这增加了地方参与O G活动。这一政策转变创造了一个自然的实验，以检查对利益相关者参与和成果的影响。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。