Discerning the Role of Scientific Knowledge on Stakeholder Presence in Natural Resources Policy Formation Using a Policy Network Analysis Approach.

Abstract:

Under the current Administration the U.S. will continue to utilize domestic fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas while exploring and investing in renewable energy resources like hydro, wind, and solar. In 2012 fossil fuels combined for 81 percent of U.S. total energy production. Extracting and generating power from traditional fossil fuel sources can negatively impact climate and human health. Of these, emissions from coal-fired power-plants create a bioaccumulation of methylmercury in nearby ecosystems. The adverse health effects of mercury contamination to human populations have a high level of scientific certainty. Yet, the certainty of effects from hydraulic fracturing (fracking) of shale gas formations is low. Methane intrusion, from fracking, into drinking well water is documented, but contamination by fracking fluids is to date unsubstantiated, and health risks are unknown.

We used Ucinet 6 and NetDraw to operationalize a policy network analysis (PNA) for two case studies of U.S. natural resources policy. Our PNA assumed the case studies were detailed descriptions of stakeholder's participation in policy-relevant events (e.g. Congressional hearings) throughout the policy-making process. The policy-making process was simplified to be a linkage of policy-relevant events in which stakeholders engaged. The dynamic reality of the policy-making process made it difficult to discern at which stage in the process a stakeholder exerted the most influence.

The mercury policy network spanned 14 years, with 37 events, 59 stakeholders, and 1567 total communication ties within the network. The fracking policy network covered only 6 years, with 19 events, 22 actors, and 218 total communication ties. We found non-governmental organizations and medical professionals were more active at mercury events than at fracking events. Academia had a greater stakeholder presence in the fracking policy network. These data suggest the level of scientific uncertainty influences which stakeholders are present in the natural resources policy-making process. When placed within a framework for scientific knowledge's role in a value-laden policy-making process, these findings provide insight to the varied movement of policy ratification and regulatory implementation among the two case studies.