IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v17y2020i4p1186-d319960.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Socio-Psychological Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing on Community Health and Well-Being

Author

Listed:
  • Mehmet Soyer

    (Department of Sociology, Social Work & Anthropology, Utah State University, 0730 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322-0730, USA)

  • Kylen Kaminski

    (Department of Sociology, Social Work & Anthropology, Utah State University, 0730 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322-0730, USA)

  • Sebahattin Ziyanak

    (Department of Social Science, University of Texas-Permian Basin, 4901 East University, Odessa, TX 79762, USA)

Abstract

At the core of the hydraulic fracturing (fracking) debate is the level of perceived risk involved with extractive industries, such as the release of toxic and carcinogenic chemicals, increased population growth, and truck traffic. However, industry supporters of fracking acclaim the benefits of oil and gas drilling, such as energy independence and economic gains. In this study, we examine the perceived impacts of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) on community health and well-being based on interviews with anti-fracking activists in Denton, Texas who were active in the “anti-fracking” community organization, Frack Free Denton (FFD). Emergent from the interviews, we discuss the socio-psychological stressors these community members experienced following the introduction of hydraulic fracturing in the region. Some of the major socio-psychological impacts included perceived physical health risks through anxiety surrounding toxins and carcinogens that may be released through this process. Participants also discussed stress put on community relations, primarily through the form of an “us vs. them” mentality related to the support for, or opposition to, fracking in the community. Moreover, we found anxiety and stress surrounding trust in community members’ relationships with governing bodies, such as the federal government, state government, and local governments. This research will allow for a more comprehensive understanding of how fracking can impact the socio-psychological well-being of the community.

Suggested Citation

  • Mehmet Soyer & Kylen Kaminski & Sebahattin Ziyanak, 2020. "Socio-Psychological Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing on Community Health and Well-Being," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-9, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:4:p:1186-:d:319960
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/4/1186/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/4/1186/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Anna Willow & Rebecca Zak & Danielle Vilaplana & David Sheeley, 2014. "The contested landscape of unconventional energy development: a report from Ohio's shale gas country," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 4(1), pages 56-64, March.
    2. Amanda Poole & Anastasia Hudgins, 2014. "“I care more about this place, because I fought for it”: exploring the political ecology of fracking in an ethnographic field school," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 4(1), pages 37-46, March.
    3. Fry, Matthew & Briggle, Adam & Kincaid, Jordan, 2015. "Fracking and environmental (in)justice in a Texas city," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 97-107.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. McCauley, Darren & Pettigrew, Kerry, 2023. "Building a just transition in asia-pacific: Four strategies for reducing fossil fuel dependence and investing in clean energy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    2. Ericson, Sean J. & Kaffine, Daniel T. & Maniloff, Peter, 2020. "Costs of increasing oil and gas setbacks are initially modest but rise sharply," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    3. Cai, Zhengyu & Maguire, Karen & Winters, John V., 2019. "Who benefits from local oil and gas employment? Labor market composition in the oil and gas industry in Texas and the rest of the United States," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    4. Fry, Matthew & Brannstrom, Christian, 2017. "Emergent patterns and processes in urban hydrocarbon governance," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 383-393.
    5. Liuyang Yao & Dangchen Sui & Xiaotong Liu & Hui Fan, 2020. "The Psychological Process of Residents’ Acceptance of Local Shale Gas Exploitation in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-20, September.
    6. Walsh, Kathryn Bills & Haggerty, Julia H., 2020. "Social license to operate during Wyoming's coalbed methane boom: Implications of private participation," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    7. Maguire, Karen & Winters, John V., 2016. "Energy Boom and Gloom? Local Effects of Oil and Natural Gas Drilling on Subjective Well-Being," IZA Discussion Papers 9811, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    8. Andrew Cheon & Shi-Teng Kang & Swetha Ramachandran, 2021. "Determinants of Environmental Conflict: When Do Communities Mobilize against Fossil Fuel Production?," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 65(7-8), pages 1308-1336, August.
    9. Evans, Neil & Jones, Calvin & Munday, Max & Song, Meng, 2019. "Economic effects in the UK periphery from unconventional gas development: Evidence from Wales," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 1037-1046.
    10. Roach, Travis, 2018. "Oklahoma earthquakes and the price of oil," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 365-373.
    11. Onur Sapci, 2022. "The Impact of Shale Energy on Population Dynamics, Labor Migration, and Employment," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-17, November.
    12. Hilary S. Boudet & Chad M. Zanocco & Peter D. Howe & Christopher E. Clarke, 2018. "The Effect of Geographic Proximity to Unconventional Oil and Gas Development on Public Support for Hydraulic Fracturing," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 38(9), pages 1871-1890, September.
    13. Evensen, Darrick & Demski, Christina & Becker, Sarah & Pidgeon, Nick, 2018. "The relationship between justice and acceptance of energy transition costs in the UK," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 222(C), pages 451-459.
    14. Cotton, Matthew & Barkemeyer, Ralf & Renzi, Barbara Gabriella & Napolitano, Giulio, 2019. "Fracking and metaphor: Analysing newspaper discourse in the USA, Australia and the United Kingdom," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 1-1.
    15. Harleman, Max & Weber, Jeremy G., 2017. "Natural resource ownership, financial gains, and governance: The case of unconventional gas development in the UK and the US," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 281-296.
    16. Christian Brannstrom & Mary Tilton & Andrew Klein & Wendy Jepson, 2015. "Spatial Distribution of Estimated Wind-Power Royalties in West Texas," Land, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-18, December.
    17. Nadaï, Alain & Labussière, Olivier, 2017. "Landscape commons, following wind power fault lines. The case of Seine-et-Marne (France)," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 807-816.
    18. Loomis, John & Haefele, Michelle, 2017. "Quantifying Market and Non-market Benefits and Costs of Hydraulic Fracturing in the United States: A Summary of the Literature," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 138(C), pages 160-167.
    19. Meng, Qingmin, 2018. "Fracking equity: A spatial justice analysis prototype," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 10-15.
    20. Carpenter, Angela & Wagner, Marcus, 2019. "Environmental justice in the oil refinery industry: A panel analysis across United States counties," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 101-109.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:4:p:1186-:d:319960. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.