What thc Frack is going on?

rtroJuctior
WHAT
THE
FRACK
IS GOING
ON?
WHAT
THE
FRACK
IS GOING
ON?
TEAM I0
Chiaia Andieossi
Massimo GuizzeLLi
CiisLina PaIamini
GiuIia PeieLLi
SiIvia RecaIcaLi
PoIitccnico di MiIano
SchooI of Dcsign
A.Y. 2u!2-2u!8
MasLei of Science
in CommunicaLion Design
SecLion C8
8
1hc gas cia
is coming
1hc full ihicai
of fiacLing
is unLnown
What thc Frack is going on? rtroJuctior
Nev Yorl Magazire, 2I
tb
September 2008
IooJarJvatervatcb.org, April 20I2
4
Table
of contents
2!
26
28
8u
84
44
8
!u
!2
!4
4$
46
$u
$2
Reseaich quesLion
and : Lvo sides of Lhe same coin
1vo seaich queiies foi one coipus buiIding
1he WiLipedia iadiaI Liee
GIossaiy
Findings
INTRODUCTION
Is soiI conLioveisiaI?
HydiauIic fiacLuiing piocess
iacLing as a ieseaich quesLion
A ieseaich meLhodoIogy: Lhe caiLogiaphic chain
FROM STATEMENTS TO DEBATE
Reseaich quesLion
1he macio acLois and fIovs
WebsiLes geoIocaLion
OpposiLe piioiiLies, opposiLe behaviouis
FROM DEBATE TO ACTORS
All the contents listed below are available online in a more concise
form in an website specifically designed as an interactive complement
to this report.
>> http://whatthefrackisgoingon.altervista.org
$ What thc Frack is going on? rtroJuctior
6!
62
64
66
68
7u
7!
72
74
78
77
78
8u
$6
60
FROM ACTORS TO NETWORKS PART 1
Reseaich quesLion
1he jouinaIism ioIe in Lhe debaLe
vs hypeiIinL neLvoiL
Macio acLois hypeiIinL neLvoiL
NeLvoiL anaIysis
Gas & oiI companies
ScienLific communiLy
OLhei macio acLois
Macio acLois connecLions
Findings
Reseaich quesLion
PiioiiLies iadai giaph
iacLing piocess: Lhe definiLion
FROM ACTORS TO NETWORKS PART 2
Science maLLeis, socieLy moie
Findings
6
87
9u
92
94
97
98
!uu
FROM NETWORKS TO COSMOS
Reseaich quesLion
1exL anaIysis unexpecLed iesuIL
1he fiacLing conLioveisy does noL sLand aIone
1axonomy
Which conLioveisies appeai viLhin Lhe piocess?
Which conLioveisiaI debaLes is ieIaLed Lo?
1he hydiauIic fiacLuiing debaLe scaIe
Macio conLioveisies cosmos
Macio conLioveisies void cIouds
ConLioveisies viLhin Lhe conLioveisy
Findings
!u!
!u2
!u4
!u6
!u8
!!u
!!2
!!4
!2u
!26
!28
ReguIaLions and iuIes
ChemicaIs and addiLives
WaLei iesouices
WasLevaLei and aii emissions
PubIic conceins
EaiLhquaLes & impacL on Iand
Findings
7 What thc Frack is going on? rtroJuctior
!29
!8u
!82
!84
!86
!88
!4u
!4!
!42
!44
!46
I48
FROM COSMOS TO COSMOPOLITICS
Reseaich quesLion
A dynamic, fasL-moving conLioveisy
2u!u, Lhe conLioveisy suifaces on Lhe veb
2u!!, ciacLing open Lhe fiacLing debaLe
2u!2, a fiacLing fiacas!
1op iegions and ciLies foi fiacLing
1op ciLies foi and
1op seaiches foi fiacLing
iacLing debaLe voiIdvide
iacLing debaLe in Lhe UniLed SLaLes
iacLing debaLe in Lhe UniLed Kingdom
Findings
APPENDIX
1abIe of conLenLs
8
I
0
0
%

o
f

d
e
g
i
a
d
e
d

I
a
n
d
Is soil
controversial?
If land degradation is a proved phenomenon,
usually public concerns focus on its effects, often
indirect, thus preventing the rise of a real online
controversy.
9 What thc Frack is going on? rtroJuctior
T
he undeiIying giaph offeis
an oveiviev of Lhe degiaded
Iand sLaLus aL a voiIdvide
IeveI: iL immediaLeIy
appeais evidenL hov mosL
Iand is affecLed by oveigiazing,
defoiesLaLion and agiicuILuiaI
acLiviLies, and hov Lhese acLiviLies
conLiibuLe Lo degiadaLion Lypes
such as vaLei and vind eiosion
in conLinenLs IiLe Asia and
Afiica vhose soiI is piimaiIy
desLined Lo agiicuILuiaI Iand and
peimanenL pasLuie. Accoiding
Lo Lhis piemise, Euiope, Oceania
and NoiLh Ameiica appeai
Lo be ieIaLiveIy degiaded and
chemicaI degiadaLion fiom bio-
indusLiiaI acLiviLies, LhaL usuaIIy
occupies a pieminenL posiLion
in oui pubIic conceins, seems
Lo have been dovnsized. BuL
does Lhis condiLion of Lhings
find a simiIai iepiesenLaLion
in Lhe veb enviionmenL? Oui
sLaiLing poinL vas Lo IooL foi
any onIine conLioveisy focusing
in iLs coie debaLe on main Iand
degiadaLion piacLices, buL some
piobIems aImosL immediaLeIy
aiose: conLioveisies viLhin Lhe
scienLific communiLy vhich mosLIy
deaI viLh iaising in piecipiLaLion
iaLe oi exLieme evenLs Liends aie
cuiienLIy soIved and Lheiefoie
cannoL be mapped; socioeconomic
conLioveisies ieIaLed Lo Iand use
and popuIaLion iighLs (e.g. Iand
giabbing) in deveIoping counLiies
invoIve acLois viLh no access
Lo Lhe medium and, once again,
cannoL be mapped Lhiough digiLaI
meLhods pioLocoIs; bioad on-going
discussions among Lhe communiLy
coiiecL Iand managemenL iuIes,
goveinmenLaI ieguIaLions and Lhe
singIe peison`s acLiviLies on Lhe
piobIem seem noL Lo be voiLh
consideiing by Lhe pubIic opinion.
Why aie peopIe noL invoIved in a
debaLe abouL Iand degiadaLion?
Oui hypoLhesis vas LhaL Lhe causaI
nexus beLveen Iand degiadaLion
and iLs effecLs is noL cIeai, LhaL is
Lo say: oiganizaLions, media and
peopIe ofLen do noL LaIL abouL Iand
degiadaLion, buL iLs effecLs.
oi Lhis ieasons, a sIighL change
of focus vas necessaiy in oui
ieseaich: vhaL do peopIe LaIL
abouL on Lhe veb vhiIe menLioning
soiI and Iand degiadaLion? Is
Lheie an acLive debaLe, beLLei sLiII
if iecenL, LhaL couId invoIve Iand
degiadaLion piacLices having an
impacL in Lhe poIiLicaI scenaiios
(aIso inLeinaLionaIIy) and, aL Lhe
same Lime, diiecLIy affecLing oui
eveiyday Iife?
!u
H
ydiauIic fiacLuiing is a
LechnicaI Leim indicaLing Lhe
human-induced cieaLion
of fiacLuies in a iocL Iayei
Lhiough Lhe injecLion of a
highIy piessuiized fIuid in oidei Lo
ieIease peLioIeum, naLuiaI gas and
oLhei subsLances foi exLiacLion.
1he fiacLing fIuid, composed of
vaLei, sand and a smaII peicenLage
of chemicaI addiLives, is pumped
inLo Lhe veIIboie aL a piessuie
sufficienL Lo ciaL Lhe iocL: Lhese
fiacLuies aie LepL open by Lhe
acLion of pioppanLs (subsLances
such as giains of sand and oLhei
paiLicuIaLes) even vhen Lhe
injecLion is sLopped and Lhe
piessuie is ieduced, and aIIov
Lhe fIov of foimaLion fIuids
Lo Lhe veII. iisL pioneeied in
!947, Lhe cuiienL piacLice, caIIed
hoiizonLaI sIicLvaLei fiacLuiing,
88
STATES
in the US involved
in the practice
I.I
MILLION TREATMENTS
of hydraulic fracturing
since 1947
Hydraulic
fracturing process
vas modeinized and has become
efficienL insomuch as iL aIIovs Lhe
exLiacLion of shaIe gas economicaI.
oi UnLed SLaLes in paiLicuIai,
buL aIso foi oLhei counLiies
vhose need of hydiocaibons is
consLanLIy iising and aims foi a
naLionaI independence, naLuiaI
gas obLainmenL fiom shaIe gas
exLiacLion couId expIoiL pieviousIy
unpioducLive ieseives and, in so
doing, ieduce Lhe puichase and
consumpLion of oLhei Iess gieen`
fossiI fueIs, viLh a consequenL
ieducLion in gieenhouse gases
emissions. On Lhe oLhei hand,
Lhe hydiauIic fiacLuiing cycIe
invoIves Lhe empIoymenL of Iaige
amounLs of vaLei and iequiies
a conLioIIed disposaI of Lhe
fIovbacL fIuids in oidei Lo avoid
iisLs of giound and suiface vaLei
iesouices conLaminaLion.
Chemical Mixing: the acquired water
is combined with chemical additives
and proppant to make the HF fluid.
> Release to water through on-site spills and leaks
Water Acquisition: large volumes of water
are withdrawn from ground and surface water
resources to be used in the HF process.
> Change in quantity of water available for drinking
1
2
Well Injection: fluid is injected into the well,
creating cracks in the geological formation
that allow oil or gas to escape through the well.
> Potential impacts on drinking water resources
3
Flowback: fluid, formation water and natural
gas begin to flow back up the well and must be
stored on-site before treatment or disposal.
> Release to water through spills from on-site storage
Wastewater Treatment and Waste Disposal:
disposal by underground injection, treatment
followed by disposal to surface water bodies
or recycling for use in future HF operations.
> Contaminants reaching drinking water
Source: www.epa.gov
4
5
MILLION GALLONS
of water used
to fracture a well
8,000
FEET
Fracking wells depth where
shale gas is extracted
4
I
CHEMICAL ADDITIVES
used within the
fracking fluids
Fracking
as a research question
!2
2u
4u
6u
8u
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2uu8 2uu7 2uu6 2uu$
With thc hydrauIic fracturing practicc
and rcIatcd pubIic attcntion raising
aII ovcr thc vorId, vhich arc thc prioritics
in fucI cxtraction, considcring cconomic
actors, scicntific community, poIicy makcrs
and stakchoIdcrs?
What thc Frack is going on? rtroJuctior !8
2u!u 2uu9 2u!! 2u!2
I8
th
DECEMBER 2012
Google Trends
data collection day
!4
A research methodology:
the cartographic chain
INPUT
OUTPUT
What thc Frack is going on? rtroJuctior !$
ritial exploratior
or Coogle.com
Searcb queries
or Coogle.com
Netvorl
visualizatior vitb
VilimirJmaps.
Marual selectior
oj terms Jejiritior
arJ builJirg oj
glossary corpus
tbrougb
VilipeJia.org
Jejiritiors
Marual rejirirg
oj URLs blacl list
arJ iJertijicatior
oj lists irtersectior
INPUT
OUTPUT
!6
Marual rejirirg
oj URLs blacl list
arJ iJertijicatior
oj lists irtersectior
Marual Jivisior
oj URLs ir a list
oj macroactor arJ
Seoquale aralysis:
- CLOip
- Coogle Pagerarl,
rJex, Lirls
- Iacebool, 1veets
Cravlirg (Jeptb 0,
Jistarce 0) oj jirst
30 HI / IR URLs,
tot 48 urls
(Navicravler)
Marual rejirirg
oj URLs blacl list
arJ iJertijicatior
oj lists irtersectior
Cravlirg (Jeptb I,
Jistarce 0)
oj sciertijic
commurity
actors, tot o urls
(Navicravler)
INPUT
OUTPUT
What thc Frack is going on? rtroJuctior !7
Marual rejirirg
oj URLs blacl list
arJ iJertijicatior
oj lists irtersectior
Cravlirg (Jeptb I,
Jistarce 0)
excluJirg
Jourralism.
Selectior oj II
most irterestirg
voisir arJ
jurtber cravl (0,0)
Marual rejirirg
oj URLs blacl list.
Urijicatior
oj sub-Jomairs
vitb mair Jomair
Netvorl Crapb
(Cepbi)
198 urls (104hf;94fr)
Netvorl aralysis
tbrougb Cepbi
grapbs ( jilter:
Jegree<2, voisir
excluJeJ)
198 urls (104hf;94fr)
INPUT
OUTPUT
!8
Marual rejirirg
oj URLs blacl list
arJ iJertijicatior
oj lists irtersectior
Marual aralysis
oj vebsites text.
Lxcel cataloguirg
arJ jurtber
simplijicatior
oj aJjectives,
corsiJerirg tbeir
semartic variatior
Orgarizatior
oj aJjectives ir 9
macro classes,
jurtber elimiratior
oj 2 irrelevart
categories
Visualizatior
oj semartic
matrices
Rescalirg oj Jata
values to a 5 steps
rarge
INPUT
OUTPUT
What thc Frack is going on? rtroJuctior !9
Marual
iJertijicatior
oj lists
irtersectior
1ext aralysis
tbrougb AN1A.
Rejirirg oj
resulteJ ertities
usirg AN1A
jilterirg tool
Marual ertities
rejirirg arJ
aggregatior
irto macrotbemes
Visualizatiors
oj ertities corpus,
relevarce arJ tbeir
relatior to sub
arJ macro
cortroversies
Lrtities Jivisior
ir 33 cortroversies.
1I-DI algoritbm
useJ to veigbt
ertities relevarce
INPUT
OUTPUT
2u
Coogle 1rerJs
Similarities
aralysis betveer
trerJs peals arJ
veb revs tbrougb
Coogle Nevs
arJ Coogle 1rerJs
Iocus or USA
arJ UK veb Jebate
Jevelopmert, vitb
Coogle Nevs arJ
Coogle 1rerJs
Visualizatiors
oj trerJ/revs
correlatior
arJ rarlirg
Coogle 1rerJs
rarlirg aralysis
jor top regiors,
top cities arJ top
searcbes