Comparative Analysis of Hydraulic Fracturing Wastewater Practices in Unconventional Shale Development: Newspaper Coverage of Stakeholder Concerns and Social License to Operate

Abstract

Abstract:In this article we review prior literature regarding the concept of social license to operate, and related concepts, including corporate social responsibility, sustainable development, stakeholder management and cumulative effects. Informed by these concepts, we search for newspaper articles published in North American provinces and states where the Barnett, Duvernay, Marcellus and Montney shale plays are located. Using these data, we tabulate coverage of stakeholder concerns related to hydraulic fracturing and wastewater practices, and compare the extent to which these concerns vary over place and time. Our vocabulary analyses identify differences in the types and quantities of newspaper coverage devoted to concerns regarding hydraulic fracturing activities in general and wastewater practices in particular. We interpret these differences as suggesting that obtaining a social license to operate is likely not a one size fits all proposition. By understanding which stakeholder concerns are most salient in particular places and times, oil and gas operators and regulators can better tailor their strategies and policies to address local concerns. In other words, the findings from this study indicate that conventional understandings of risk as a technical or economic problem may not be adequate for dealing with unconventional resource challenges such as hydraulic fracturing. Operators and regulators may also need to manage social and cultural risks.

Using BP Neural Networks to Prioritize Risk Management Approaches for China’s Unconventional Shale Gas Industry

“…Finally, development of the shale gas industry involves many parties [87] with different and sometimes conflicting expectations [54,88], thus, broad-based risk management efforts are required. The government should strengthen the supervision of resources, market and environmental protection to ensure that risks are minimized.…”

Social License to Operate and Adaptive Co-Marketing: Exchange, Social Capital and Community-Based Social Marketing

“…Very importantly such opposition has become intermistic in that environmental or human rights issues, for example, are no longer framed as being a concern within a country, but have become concerns of citizens and consumers in other countries, who may take action against companies if they perceive behaviours to be wrong, and even if they have fulfilled their legal requirements [30][31]. Second, changes in in social values, that reflect the growth of political consumerism and concerns over various rights, have gone hand-in-hand with the growth of the global civil sector [3]. Third, the globalization of consumer concern over corporate activities is interrelated to the changes in communication technologies, especially the Internet, that provides various communities to voice concerns over corporate activities [6].…”

“…The term is used to suggest that a "social contract" exists between businesses, often with a project that has significant environmental change associated with it, and the various communities of interest that are or will be affected by the project. While companies are required to abide by legal permits, regulation and licence, SLO is the less tangible aspect of social acceptance, which ensures a company is not at risk or, at least, reduces the corporate risk of community conflict or protests with its projects and/or products [1][2][3]. It has been suggested that the application of SLO is meant to encapsulate particular activities, ideals and values, that allow for successful business operations [4].…”

“…The adoption of SLO therefore provides companies with the opportunity to not only prevent rejection by communities, and their potentially significant economic and reputational costs, but also to claim compliance or legitimacy without the approval of governments or legal bodies that enforce regulations [2,8]. SLO is therefore a significant mechanism for managing economic and reputational risk through formal and informal corporate actions [3,[9][10][11][12][13][14], while it has been claimed that companies that promote SLO have improved competitiveness and corporate reputation, ongoing resource access, experience reduced regulation, strengthened stakeholder relationships and a more positive workforce [11,[15][16].…”

The US Shale Gas Revolution and Its Externality on Crude Oil Prices: A Counterfactual Analysis

“…Previously, the viability of shale gas was regarded as either non-feasible or uneconomical due to technological limitations and low gas price. However, during the mid-2000s, the application of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling in the US, coupled with the surge in gas prices, enabled the extraction of huge quantities of natural gas from shale [2]. The production of shale gas has therefore increased thirteen times between 2007 and 2016.…”