Shale Gas Extraction in Poland in the Context of Sustainable Development

Jakub Kronenberg


Department of International Economics, Faculty of Economics and Sociology, University of Lodz, POW 3/5, 90-251 Lodz (Poland)


Abstract

In June 2010 Poland was electrified by the big news: the country claimed to hold the largest shale gas reserves in Europe. Following the enthusiastic approach of the government and extractive companies, the public discourse has focused on the expected economic and geopolitical benefits of shale gas extraction. Meanwhile, the broader context of sustainability tends to be neglected. Some recent references to sustainable development in the context of shale gas extraction in Poland indicate that this concept needs a more thorough understanding. This article explores the following three aspects of sustainable development that need to be considered in the discussions on shale gas extraction in Poland. (1) Will the extracted natural capital be replaced with other forms of capital to ensure the well-being of future generations? (2) Will the formal institutions ensure that extractive companies prevent and mitigate all real and potential negative effects resulting from shale gas extraction? (3) How will the contribution of shale gas extraction to human well-being and national wealth be measured? The above issues link to important theoretical considerations within the concept of sustainable development, such as the weak vs. strong sustainability dilemma, internalizing external costs, and sustainability indicators (e.g. greening the GDP). 


Keywords:

shale gas, weak vs. strong sustainability, externalities, greening GDP, resource curse

ALLEN C., A Guidebook to the Green Economy (Issue 2: exploring green economy principles), UNDESA, New York 2012.
  Google Scholar

ATKINSON G., HAMILTON K., 2003, Savings, Growth and the Resource Curse Hypothesis, in: World Development vol. 31, no. 11, p. 1793-1807.
  Google Scholar

BERNSTEIN P., KINNAMAN T.C., WU M., 2013, Estimating willingness to pay for river amenities and safety measures associated with shale gas extraction, in: Eastern Economic Journal vol. 39, no. 1, p. 28-44.
  Google Scholar

BROOMFIELD M., Support to the identification of potential risks for the environment and human health arising from hydrocarbons operations involving hydraulic fracturing in Europe. Report for European Commission DG Environment, AEA Technology. Harwell, Didcot 2012.
  Google Scholar

BURNHAM A., HAN J., CLARK C.E., WANG M., DUNN J. B., PALOU-RIVERA I., 2012, Life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of shale gas, natural gas, coal, and petroleum, in: Environmental Science & Technology vol. 46, no. 2, p. 619-627.
  Google Scholar

CHRISTOPHERSON S., RIGHTOR N., 2012, How shale gas extraction affects drilling localities: Lessons for regional and city policy makers, in: Journal of Town and City Management vol. 2, no. 4, p. 350-368.
  Google Scholar

DALY H. E., 1990, Sustainable development: from concept and theory to operational principles, in: Population and Development Review Vol. 16, Supplement: Resources, Environment, and Population, p. 25-43.
  Google Scholar

DIETZ S., NEUMAYER E., DE SOYSA I., 2007. Corruption, the resource curse and genuine saving. in: Environment and Development Economics vol. 12, no. 1, p. 33-53.
  Google Scholar

FÜLLEMANN N., Assessment of environmental impacts related to shale gas extraction in the Polish context, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne 2012.
  Google Scholar

GOPALAKRISHNAN S., KLAIBER H. A., 2013, Is the shale boom a bust for nearby residents? Evidence from housing values in Pennsylvania, in: American Journal of Agricultural Economics, in print.
  Google Scholar

HAMILTON K., BOLT K., Genuine saving as an indicator of sustainability, in: eds. Atkinson G., Dietz S., Neumayer E., Handbook of sustainable development, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, Northampton 2007, p. 292-306.
  Google Scholar

HARTWICK J. M., 1977, Intergenerational equity and the investing of rents from exhaustible resources, in: The American Economic Review vol. 67, no. 5, p. 972-974.
  Google Scholar

HARTWICK J.M., 1978, Substitution among exhaustible resources and intergenerational equity, in: The Review of Economic Studies vol. 45, no. 2, p. 347.
  Google Scholar

HOWARTH R.W., SANTORO R., INGRAFFEA A., 2011, Methane and the greenhouse-gas footprint of natural gas from shale formations, in: Climatic Change vol. 106, no. 4, p. 679-690.
  Google Scholar

HULTMAN N., REBOIS D., SCHOLTEN M., RAMIG C., 2011, The greenhouse impact of unconventional gas for electricity generation, in: Environmental Research Letters vol. 6, no. 4, p. 044008.
  Google Scholar

IEA, Toward a sustainable energy future, International Energy Agency, Paris 2001.
  Google Scholar

JIANG M., GRIFFIN W.M., HENDRICKSON C., JARAMILLO P., VANBRIESEN J., VENKATESH A., 2011, Life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of Marcellus shale gas, in: Environmental Research Letters vol. 6, no. 3, p. 034014.
  Google Scholar

KAVALOV B., PELLETIER N., Shale gas for Europe – main environmental and social considerations, UE, Luxembourg 2012.
  Google Scholar

KRONENBERG J., Hipoteza przekleństwa zasobów naturalnych jako niebezpieczeństwo utraty korzyści związanych z posiadanymi zasobami: przypadek wydobycia gazu łupkowego w Polsce, in: Ekonomista, in print.
  Google Scholar

KRONENBERG J., 2012, Viable alternatives for large scale unsustainable projects in developing countries: The case of the Kumtor gold mine in Kyrgyzstan, in: Sustainable Development, in print (DOI: 10.1002/sd.1529).
  Google Scholar

KRONENBERG J., BERGIER T. (eds.), Challenges of Sustainable Development in Poland, Sendzimir Foundation, Kraków 2010.
  Google Scholar

KRONENBERG J. BERGIER T., 2012, Sustainable development in a transition economy: business case studies from Poland, in: Journal of Cleaner Production vol. 26, p. 18-27.
  Google Scholar

MEHLUM H., MOENE K., TORVIK R., 2006a, Cursed by Resources or Institutions?, in: The World Economy vol. 29, no. 8, p. 1117-1131.
  Google Scholar

MEHLUM H., MOENE K., TORVIK R., 2006b, Institutions and the resource curse, in: The Economic Journal vol. 116, no. 508, p. 1-20.
  Google Scholar

MENEGAKI A. 2008, Valuation for renewable energy: A comparative review, in: Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews vol. 12, no. 9, p. 2422-2437.
  Google Scholar

MINISTERSTWO ŚRODOWISKA, 2012, Gaz z łupków bezpieczny dla środowiska, http://www.mos.gov.pl/artykul/7_aktualnosci/18124_gaz_z_lupkow_bezpieczny_dla_srodowiska.html, (29.03.2013).
  Google Scholar

MINISTRY OF ADMINISTRATION AND DIGITIZATION, 2013. Polska 2030: Trzecia fala nowoczesności, MAiC, Warsaw 2013.
  Google Scholar

MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND MINISTRY OF ECONOMY, Strategia ‘Bezpieczeństwo Energetyczne i Środowisko’: perspektywa 2020 r., MoE/MoE, Warsaw 2012.
  Google Scholar

MUEHLENBACHS L., SPILLER E., TIMMINS C., Shale Gas Development and Property Values: Differences across Drinking Water Sources, Working Paper. National Bureau of Economic Research, 2012, http://www.nber.org/papers/w18390 (31.05.2013).
  Google Scholar

NEUMAYER E., Weak versus strong sustainability: exploring the limits of two opposing paradigms, Elgar, Cheltenham, Northampton 2003.
  Google Scholar

PEARSON I., ZENIEWSKI P., GRACCEVA F., ZASTERA P., MCGLADE C., SORRELL S., SPEIRS J., THONHAUSER G., 2012, Unconventional Gas: Potential Energy Market Impacts in the European Union, UE, Luxembourg 2012.
  Google Scholar

PGI, Environmental aspects of hydraulic fracturing treatment performed on the Łebień LE‐2H well, PGI, Warsaw, 2011.
  Google Scholar

PGI, Assessment of shale gas and shale oil resources of the Lower Paleozoic Baltic-Podlasie-Lublin Basin in Poland, PGI, Warsaw 2012.
  Google Scholar

POPKIN J.H., DUKE J. M., BORCHERS A.M., ILVENTO T., 2013, Social costs from proximity to hydraulic fracturing in New York State, in: Energy Policy, in print.
  Google Scholar

ROBINSON J.A., TORVIK R., VERDIER T., 2006, Political foundations of the resource curse, in: Journal of Development Economics vol. 79, no. 2, p. 447-468.
  Google Scholar

RUMBACH A., Natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale: potential impacts on the tourism economy of the Southern Tier, Technical Report, Southern Tier Central Regional Planning and Development Board, Corning, 2011.
  Google Scholar

SCHMIDT C. W., 2011, Blind rush? Shale gas boom proceeds amid human health questions, in: Environmental Health Perspectives, vol. 119, no. 8, p. a348-a353.
  Google Scholar

SIEMEK, J. NAGY S., SIEMEK P., 2013, Challenges for sustainable development: the case of shale gas exploitation in Poland, in: Problemy Ekorozwoju/Problems of Sustainable Development vol. 8, no. 1, p. 91-104.
  Google Scholar

TARAS A., Informacja w sprawie poszukiwań gazu łupkowego w Polsce z uwzględnieniem zaangażowania w tę działalność Stanów Zjednoczonych, BBN, Warszawa 2011.
  Google Scholar

U.S. EIA, World shale gas resources: an initial assessment of 14 regions outside the United States, U.S. Energy Information Administration, Washington, D.C. 2011.
  Google Scholar

U.S. EPA, Study of the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources (progress report), EPA 601/R-12/011, Washington, D.C. 2012.
  Google Scholar

WCED (World Commission on Environment and Development), Our Common Future, Oxford University Press, New York 1987.
  Google Scholar

ŻYLICZ T. Basic theory of sustainable development, in: eds. Kronenberg J., Bergier T., Challenges of sustainable development in Poland, Sendzimir Foundation, Kraków 2010, p. 69-82.
  Google Scholar

Download


Published
2014-07-01

Cited by

Kronenberg, J. (2014). Shale Gas Extraction in Poland in the Context of Sustainable Development. Problemy Ekorozwoju, 9(2), 113–120. Retrieved from https://ph.pollub.pl/index.php/preko/article/view/4880

Authors

Jakub Kronenberg 

Department of International Economics, Faculty of Economics and Sociology, University of Lodz, POW 3/5, 90-251 Lodz Poland

Statistics

Abstract views: 7
PDF downloads: 3