Feeding the Wrong Wolf: Work, Gender, and Generosity in a Northern Alberta Oil and Gas Community
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Feeding the Wrong Wolf: Work, Gender, and Generosity in a Northern Alberta Oil and Gas Community By Dan E. Houser A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario © 2018 Dan E. Houser Abstract This thesis is an ethnography of Grande Prairie, an oil and gas community in the Peace Region of north-western Alberta. Drawing on 21 months of fieldwork, the cultural values of workers in the oil and gas industry are explored, along with how they navigate and understand their roles within that industry. It is found that the views held by such workers are heavily influenced by the nature of the exchange relationships that peripheral communities enter into with oil and gas companies, relationships that simultaneously support the community and embolden the scale and scope of industry activity. As such, notions of masculinity, gender, work, place, economics, and history co-mingle and contribute to the assembling of a series of masculine cultural value systems, including those that: encourage residents who profit from working in the industry to reinvest their time and money into the community; validate and maintain belief in the value, necessity, and enduring need for the goods, services, and jobs that result from oil and gas exploration in Alberta and Canada; imagine and summon peripheral and frontier communities as masculine spaces of economic, metaphoric, and social opportunity; and support and perpetuate traditional understandings of sexuality, manhood, gender, and femininity in working and community life. While those in Grande Prairie who resist normative gender and masculinity find support in a localized arts scene, other groups in the Peace Region, such as First Nations peoples and religious communities concerned with the social and environmental impacts of industry activity, lack similar support. Ultimately, these groups express their dissatisfaction with the industry through protest and subversion, but as with those who work within oil and gas, are largely powerless to avoid its impacts. i Acknowledgements There are many people that need to be both acknowledged and thanked here, and it is likely that someone will be forgotten. For this, I apologize in advance. First up is my dedicated partner and spouse, sulyn bodnaresko. sulyn has been unwavering in her support of my work, acting as editor, confidant, ass-kicker, and sounding board. Without her, I would not have been able to complete this multi-year learning journey. My parents – Sheila & Barry – are deserving of appreciation. They supported this project in a myriad of ways, including financially and emotionally. Their patience is appreciated. A hearty ‘Thank you!’ to all who chose to participate in the study, including co-workers, those I connected with through social media, and those I met in time-tested ways: in bars, taxis, and on airplanes. I am grateful for your trust in me and willingness to indulge seemingly endless questions. I hope that such trust has been rewarded, and that your voices have been represented in the best possible way. There are a number of people and organizations within the Peace Region and the City of Grande Prairie deserving of mention. I want to express my sincere thanks to the Centre for Research and innovation (CRI), and particularly, its director, Dr. Bruce Rutley. Dr. Rutley was instrumental in assisting my access to Grande Prairie’s academic and business sectors. Many thanks to Grande Prairie Regional College for conferring Visiting Scholar status upon me, and for general support. Thank you as well to Connie Korpan, Dawn Moffat McMaster, René Gadacz, Darryl White, Laurie Nock, and Alan Segal. At Carleton University, I extend my gratitude to staff and faculty members of the Anthropology & Sociology Department, including the ever-capable Paula Whissell. A department ii runs on its staff, and Paula’s fine example was evident to me each day on (and off) campus. I am also indebted to Blair Rutherford, Jackie Kennelly, and Louise de la Gorgendière for their insights and knowledge. Much respect and gratitude to my esteemed supervisor, Dr. Danielle Dinovelli-Lang, for challenging me intellectually, and supporting my research and writing. I owe many thanks as well to my venerable committee members: Thank you to Dr. Donna Patrick, co-supervisor, for wisdom and grace, well received. Thank you to Dr. Peter Gose, for sharing his deep understanding of work-related literature freely, being supremely approachable, and possessing what is surely Ottawa’s most colourful collection of shirts. I have been well supported by such a team. I also thank my fellow graduate students from across anthropology and sociology at Carleton – I sometimes felt like a (Western) fish out of water, and so many of you were gracious, kind, and encouraging. I will never forget that. Thank you as well to Jane Parpart and Tim Shaw for dinners, offers of accommodation, and unending interest in the project. Lastly, my gratitude to the staff at Mike’s. I enjoyed a pint and curry there with good friends as often as possible. iii Dedication This thesis is dedicated to the memory of Blake MacMillan, who came into the PhD program at Carleton the same year as I. Despite backgrounds in different disciplines, we fell into a quick and easy rapport, sharing many epiphanies while taking a seminar course together, several years ago. Blake was bright, capable, and a complete pleasure to be near. The fact that we can no longer joke about forming a heavy metal band in tribute of the works of Foucault is shattering. More comfortingly, Blake’s legacy of scholarship, humour, volunteerism, and curiousity continues to reverberate throughout the 7th floor of the Loeb Building, and far beyond. Thanks for the inspiration, B. iv Table of Contents ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................................................... I ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................................................................... II DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................................................... IV LIST OF FIGURES AND GRAPHICS ............................................................................................................................ 1 CHAPTER 1 ............................................................................................................................................................. 2 1.0 – PREAMBLE ........................................................................................................................................................... 2 1.1 – STUDYING OIL AND GAS IN ALBERTA ......................................................................................................................... 3 1.1.2 – Oil and Gas Literature .............................................................................................................................. 8 1.2 – EXPLORING GENDER AND MASCULINITY IN OIL AND GAS WORK ................................................................................... 13 1.3 – UNDERSTANDING CANADA THROUGH A LENS OF OIL AND GAS ..................................................................................... 17 1.3.1 – Attracting New Employees? ................................................................................................................... 20 1.3.2 – Small Towns and Vulnerability ............................................................................................................... 22 1.4 – THE RICHNESS OF WORKING-CLASS LIFE .................................................................................................................. 28 1.4.1- Work and Bodies ...................................................................................................................................... 29 1.4.2 – There is More to GP than Work .............................................................................................................. 32 1.5 – CHAPTER SUMMARY AND OVERVIEW OF CHAPTERS TO FOLLOW ................................................................................... 33 2.0 – THE CANADIAN OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY .................................................................................................................. 37 2.1 – EARLY HISTORY ................................................................................................................................................... 39 2.2 – MODERN CONTEXT: CONVENTIONAL OIL, OFFSHORE, OIL (TAR) SANDS, AND HYDRAULIC FRACTURING............................... 43 2.2.1 - Conventional Oil and Gas Drilling............................................................................................................ 44 2.2.2 - Newfoundland’s Hibernia Field ............................................................................................................... 45 2.2.3 - The Athabasca Oil (Tar) Sands ................................................................................................................ 47 2.2.4 - Hydraulic Fracturing ................................................................................................................................ 49 2.3 – INDUSTRY ORGANIZATION ....................................................................................................................................