Using Inspection Violations as an Environmental Performance Indicator for Natural Gas Companies: Specification Issues and Implications

• In Event: Public Interest 1

Abstract

This paper describes the creation of an environmental performance indicator for firms that are extracting natural gas using hydrofracturing (fracking) technologies. The performance measure is created from publicly available regulatory data -- well inspection violations and production data. As initially conceived, the main point of the paper was to create a relative simple measure of environmental performance that is based on so-called “easily available” data. As the project progressed, the main emphasis evolved into a description of how to manipulate state regulatory data, which, for various reasons, was unexpectedly complex and difficult. In addition to describing the mechanics of creating the metric, the paper also outlines the implications of this performance indicator from an accounting and ecological management perspective.

Author

• John A Pendley, Susquehanna University