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Source: Odessa American, TexasJan.24小時迷你倉 05--Hydraulic fracturing is the well completion technique behind the national oil and gas boom. It is controversial. But few Americans understand what it is, and even still, that understanding is poorly informed by what life is actually like in a boomtown, according to a recent survey by researchers at Oregon State, George Mason and Yale universities.The study surveyed 1,061 people throughout the country, and more than half reported knowing "little or nothing" about "the issue," while those that did were split almost evenly about whether to support it."First of all, most Americans don't associate the term "fracking" with anything in particular -- They don't know," said Hilary Boudet, a public policy expert at Oregon State University and lead author on the study, on Friday. "Those that do so with oil and gas do so generically. "That population still reflects confusion, perhaps a result of conflicted interests about oil and gas development putting forward conflicting information.Boudet in a statement accompanying the study's release said that suggests an opportunity to educate Americans "in a non-partisan way about this important issue. The question is who will lead that discussion?"Fracking is the colloquial term for when operators pump millions of gallons of pressurized water mixed with sand and chemicals into underground rock through a perforated wellbore, splitting the rock apart and unleashing oil and/or natural gas.That, at least, summarizes the technical part.But public perception is chiefly shaped by environmental or economic impacts, according to the report, published in late December in the academic journal Energy Policy. Even lesser attention is given nationally "to social impacts: physical and psychological changes communities face throughout the various stages of development-related boom and bust."Put differently: the fracking controversy is not about West Texas, or the other places where communities see the broader impacts of the national oil renaissance. Those impacts, the study reports, include not just macroeconomic triumph or environmental risk but issues such as like higher crime, tighter housing, upward mobility and the small businesses that are performing well during the boom.Further research into perception of people in communities near energy production could better inform "policy makers seeking to balance the needs of local communities grappling with unconventional oil/gas development with those of broader regional populations.""In some wa迷你倉旺角s you get a sense of how far the shadow of development goes: so who actually feels personally affected by a particular development," Boudet said, adding that understanding can help with planning and communication efforts.The study did not assess how perceptions might vary geographically or how people living close to energy production might feel. Boudet said she plans to research that.Supporters of fracking generally argue that the technique spurs economic growth, advances domestic energy supplies for greater security and provides a bridge away from coal-based power, which is more carbon-intensive, according to the study.About 22 percent of respondents in the study said they supported fracking. Generally, they were better educated, politically conservative and older. They tended to watch TV as their primary news source.About 20 percent of respondents said they opposed fracking. This group included women, those with egalitarian world views and people who said they were more familiar with the process. Opponents were also likely to associate fracking with environmental harm. They tended to get their news from newspapers."People that are actually familiar with hydraulic fracturing and what it does, have got to be way below 1 percent of the people in this country," said Kirk Edwards, president of Las Colinas Energy Partners and past president of the Permian Basin Petroleum Association, adding that fracking is often unfairly tied to other problems that might actually exist, confusing people. "There has been a tremendous amount of human error in relation to production of oil and gas but it has nothing to do with hydraulic fracturing."PBPA leaders have encouraged members to better explain what they do to the public, describing a need to dispel misconceptions. That is why Jimmy Davis, the oilfield operations manager for Midland-based Fasken Oil and Ranch, said he has brought a host of national media on tours of the company's leases.Boudet, for her part in the fracking perception study, wrote "it is high time to pursue a wide ranging and inclusive public dialog about its potential risks and benefits.""People are busy, so it's hard for them to stay up to speed on some of these issues," Boudet said. "It's been in many ways invisible when we go to the gas tank."Contact Corey Paul on Twitter @OAcrime on Facebook at OA Corey Paul or call 432-333-7768.Copyright: ___ (c)2014 the Odessa American (Odessa, Texas) Visit the Odessa American (Odessa, Texas) at .oaoa.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesmini storage