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Debating Extractivism: Stakeholder Communications in British Columbia’s Liquefied Natural Gas Controversy
- Source :
- SAGE Open, Vol 10 (2020)
- Publication Year :
- 2023
- Publisher :
- Ryerson University Library and Archives, 2023.
-
Abstract
- Shale gas extraction via hydraulic fracturing has been a controversial issue in many countries. In Canada, the provincial government of British Columbia (BC) has made relentless efforts on developing a liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry targeting potential Asian importers, which has been a heatedly debated public controversy since late 2011. Focusing on the two contending discourse coalitions formed by this policy initiative’s supporters and opponents, respectively, this article explores the intricate economic, political, and ideological struggles underlying Canadian extractivism. A qualitative discourse analysis of related stakeholder communications reveals that the pro-LNG coalition led by the BC Liberal government developed a “progressive extractivism” storyline to frame LNG exports as an unprecedented and ethical economic opportunity deserving the political support of environmentally minded British Columbians. By contrast, the anti-LNG coalition formed by progressive civil organizations, Indigenous groups, and concerned citizens engaged in fierce discursive resistance, notably via (a) adopting mainstream economic knowledge to highlight the fragile economic basis of BC LNG and (b) incorporating potent political issues such as democratic governance and reconciliation to expand public debates beyond the “jobs versus the environment” dichotomy.
- Subjects :
- Shale gas
020209 energy
media_common.quotation_subject
Discourse analysis
02 engineering and technology
010501 environmental sciences
01 natural sciences
Indigenous
lcsh:Social Sciences
Politics
Hydraulic fracturing
Environmental protection
Political science
lcsh:AZ20-999
0502 economics and business
0202 electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering
Mainstream
050207 economics
0105 earth and related environmental sciences
media_common
Government
050208 finance
General Arts and Humanities
05 social sciences
Stakeholder
General Social Sciences
16. Peace & justice
lcsh:History of scholarship and learning. The humanities
Extractivism
lcsh:H
Political economy
Business
Ideology
Liquefied natural gas
Subjects
Details
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- SAGE Open, Vol 10 (2020)
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....9f9f1ca3616945fb8a87a9b45a6a1d65