Advocacy Networks in the Marcellus Shale Area: a Study of Environmental Organizations in Northeastern and Southwestern Pennsylvania Erin Pischke
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Duquesne University Duquesne Scholarship Collection Electronic Theses and Dissertations Spring 2013 Advocacy Networks in the Marcellus Shale Area: A Study of Environmental Organizations in Northeastern and Southwestern Pennsylvania Erin Pischke Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/etd Recommended Citation Pischke, E. (2013). Advocacy Networks in the Marcellus Shale Area: A Study of Environmental Organizations in Northeastern and Southwestern Pennsylvania (Master's thesis, Duquesne University). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/1050 This Immediate Access is brought to you for free and open access by Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ADVOCACY NETWORKS IN THE MARCELLUS SHALE AREA: A STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS IN NORTHEASTERN AND SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Center for Social and Public Policy McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts Duquesne University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Public Policy By Erin Pischke May 2013 Copyright by Erin Pischke 2013 ADVOCACY NETWORKS IN THE MARCELLUS SHALE AREA: A STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS IN NORTHEASTERN AND SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA By Erin Pischke Approved March 25, 2013 ________________________________ ________________________________ Michael Irwin, Ph.D., Associate Professor Lenore K. Resick, Ph.D., CRNP, FNP- and Chair, Department of Sociology BC, NP-C, FAANP, Clinical Professor, School of Nursing ________________________________ ________________________________ Charles Hanna, Ph.D., Director, James Swindall, Ph.D., Dean, Graduate Center for Social and Public McAnulty College and Graduate School Policy of Liberal Arts iii ABSTRACT ADVOCACY NETWORKS IN THE MARCELLUS SHALE AREA: A STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS IN NORTHEASTERN AND SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA By Erin Pischke May 2013 Thesis supervised by Michael Irwin, Ph.D. and Lenore K. Resick, Ph.D., CRNP, FNP- BC, NP-C, FAANP This research identifies and analyzes the breadth and depth of the network of non- profit environmental organizations, sportsmen-oriented conservation groups, county conservation districts and state parks that advocate for or against Marcellus Shale drilling within northeastern and southwestern Pennsylvania where drilling occurs. The purpose of this study is to identify where resources are being mobilized and where environmental activities that focus on Marcellus Shale issues are underrepresented in the state. Results show that the counties with a higher number of gas wells do not necessarily have a higher level of environmental advocacy and that a lack of resources is a common barrier to this type of work. Organizations are better connected locally within the northeast. Counties which need to bolster their Marcellus Shale advocacy efforts in the northeast include: iv Carbon, Pike, Potter, Sullivan, Susquehanna and Wayne; and in the southwest: Beaver, Bedford, Blair, Fayette, Fulton, Greene, Somerset and Washington. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to both Dr. Michael Irwin and Dr. Lenore Resick for their guidance. This research was graciously supported by the Dr. Michael P. Weber Endowed Research Grant. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT................................................................................................................... iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................ vi LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................... xiii LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................... xiv Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 Background ..................................................................................................................... 5 Theoretical Background ................................................................................................ 10 Contributions of the Research ........................................................................................ 11 State of Research on Natural Gas Drilling and Advocacy: Literature Review ................ 13 Environmental Impacts .............................................................................................. 13 Potential water and air pollution. ........................................................................... 15 Environmental and public health concerns. ............................................................ 17 Environmental Justice Concerns ................................................................................ 18 Boom Town Models .................................................................................................. 22 Legislation and Industry Regulations ......................................................................... 25 National regulations. .............................................................................................. 26 State regulations. ................................................................................................... 27 Local regulations. .................................................................................................. 28 vii Network Analysis ...................................................................................................... 31 Resource Mobilization Theory ................................................................................... 36 Social Movement Theory........................................................................................... 37 Organizational Barriers .............................................................................................. 38 Summary of Knowns and Unknowns ......................................................................... 39 Research Hypotheses ..................................................................................................... 40 Classes of Variables ...................................................................................................... 41 Research Design ............................................................................................................ 41 Quantitative and Qualitative Methodology ................................................................. 42 Phase One of Research .............................................................................................. 46 Phase Two of Research .............................................................................................. 48 Informed Consent Procedures .................................................................................... 50 Findings ........................................................................................................................ 51 Primary Focus of Organizations ................................................................................. 51 Organizations‘ Missions ........................................................................................ 51 Secondary Focus of Organizations ............................................................................. 53 Types of Collaborative Activities in Which Members Engage ................................... 55 Timeline of Organizations‘ Marcellus Shale Advocacy.............................................. 56 Organizations‘ Time Spent on Advocacy Efforts ....................................................... 56 Level of Concern with Marcellus Shale Issues ........................................................... 58 viii Geographic Range of Organizations‘ Activities ......................................................... 59 Self-assessment of Resource Mobilization ................................................................. 60 Resource needs of surveyed organizations: Quantitative findings. .......................... 60 Resource needs of surveyed organizations: Qualitative findings. ............................ 63 Resource needs of surveyed organizations by categorization of organization missions: Qualitative findings. ............................................................................ 65 Categorical resource needs for environmental organizations‘ individual Marcellus Shale advocacy. .................................................................................................. 65 Categorical resource needs for environmental organizations‘ collaborative Marcellus Shale advocacy. .................................................................................. 66 Categorical resource needs for county conservation districts‘ individual Marcellus Shale advocacy ................................................................................................... 68 Categorical resource needs for county conservation districts‘ collaborative Marcellus Shale advocacy ................................................................................... 69 Categorical resource needs for sportsmen-oriented conservation groups‘ individual Marcellus Shale advocacy ................................................................................... 69 Categorical resource needs for sportsmen-oriented conservation groups‘ collaborative Marcellus Shale advocacy .............................................................