Nurturing Natural Gas: Conflict and Controversy of Natural Gas Extraction in the Netherlands

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Tim Goossens

Nurturing Natural Gas:

Conflict and Controversy of Natural Gas Extraction in the Netherlands

Master‘s thesis in Global Environmental History

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Abstract

Goossens, T.A.T. 2017. Nurturing Natural Gas: Conflict and Controversy of Natural Gas Extraction in the Netherlands. Uppsala, Dept of Archaeology and Ancient History.

In this thesis, the current state of natural gas extraction and production in the Netherlands is examined. Grand-scale production transformed the energy network in 1959 with the finding of the Groningen gas field, but in recent years earthquakes and subsidence have become more frequent and destructive. In 2012 the biggest induced earthquake to date struck near Huizinge. This earthquake served as a wake-up call for the nation and led to renewed research on the connection between natural gas and earthquakes, as well as opening up national debate mixed with social concerns. One of the resulting reports published in 2015 concluded that the safety of the citizens in natural gas extraction areas was neglected. The events following both the 2012 earthquake and the safety problem serve as case studies to lay bare the controversies inherent in dealing with natural gas in the age of climate change and energy transitions. Both Actor-Network Theory and discourse analysis are used to examine and analyse these case studies and form the core of this study. Chief results of both analyses found that scientific reports published by both natural gas extraction and research actors are very technical, and consequently hardly address social concerns. In addition, the decision-making process regarding natural gas extraction and production takes place in a closed network; not serving interests of those actors that are excluded, but are still connected to the effects of natural gas production. The gas extraction actors have issues with

transparency and taking responsibility towards increasingly visible negative effects of (continued) natural gas extraction and production, and lacking communication of (scientific) uncertainties and risks have fuelled a lasting controversy surrounding the state of natural gas in the Netherlands.

Keywords: natural gas, Netherlands, global environmental history, fossil fuel, energy, actor network theory, discourse analysis, controversy, earthquake, safety.

Master‘s thesis in Global Environmental History (60 credits), supervisor: Anneli Ekblom, Defended and approved spring term 2017-06-02

Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, Box 626, 75126 Uppsala, Sweden

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Abbreviations and illustrations

Actor Acronyms

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EBN Energiebeheer Nederland

Energy Management Netherlands

EU Europese Unie

European Union

GBB Groninger Bodem Beweging Groninger Ground Movement

KNMI Koninklijk Nederlands Meteorologisch Instituut Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute MEZ Ministerie van Economische Zaken

Ministry of Economic Affairs NAM Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij

Netherlands Petroleum Company OVV Onderzoeksraad voor Veiligheid

Dutch Safety Board

SER Sociaal-Economische Raad Social and Economic Council SODM Staatstoezicht op de Mijnen

State Supervision of Mines

TCBB Technische Commissie Bodembeweging Technical Subsidence Commission

TNO Nederlandse Organisatie voor Toegepast Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research

1 In order for the acronyms to make sense, the Dutch meaning is stated first followed by an English translation – which if not provided by the actor has been translated by the author.

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Illustrations

Figure 1...25

Figure 2...27

Figure 3...27

Figure 4...28

Figure 5...35

Figure 6...44

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Introduction

In the course of the last decades the extraction and production of natural resources, fossil fuels in particular, has increasingly been questioned. Not only are most of these resources finite, but they also strain the environment. Consumption of fossil fuels has in part been accredited to climate change and is responsible for major changes in the environment (Wuebbles and Jain 2001: 103, 104, 106). As a student of global environmental history and being Dutch, I developed an interest in Dutch natural gas. The Netherlands plays an

interesting part in the natural resources discourse as the Netherlands is one of the EU countries where natural gas has been most influential in society. The Netherlands has been using domestic natural gas heavily since the late 1950s, and the national reliance on gas has spawned several conflicts which have generally been well documented and written on.

Although natural gas is considered as one of the cleanest fossil fuels available, natural gas still contributes substantially to global carbon emissions. More recently extraction of natural gas has had a big impact on the environment of the extraction region in Slochteren,

Groningen in the form of earthquakes, officially recognised as the result of natural gas extraction (SODM 2015b: 4).

Dutch natural gas was only introduced in the Netherlands roughly seventy years ago, but has greatly impacted the country. The history of natural gas in the Netherlands began with the initial grand scale introduction in 1959, with the discovery of the Groningen gas field. The Groningen gas field is one of the largest natural gas fields in the world, and has been used extensively since its discovery, both for domestic and foreign purposes. The Groningen gas field was also very important for the post-war development of the Netherlands, and natural gas has been a significant resource and asset since. The gas field still singlehandedly accounts for half of all natural gas production in the Netherlands. For example, virtually every Dutch household runs on natural gas and the history of the Groningen gas field has even been included in the Canon of Dutch History; a compulsory primary and secondary school subject (Committee for the Development of the Dutch Canon 2007: 214-215).

Natural gas in the Netherlands has been the subject of national pride and accomplishments, as it helped to rebuild and push forward the nation.

In recent years however, the reputation and production of natural gas has increasingly become controversial due to widespread social concern. The current climate change

awareness, combined with the earthquakes in Groningen, is evoking debate about the effects of continued usage of and benefits from natural gas. Ever since the discovery of large quantities of natural gas, the Netherlands has created a strong economic dependence which has influenced geopolitical decisions, economic growth, and political relations.

Governmental actions or lack of actions based on a Laissez-faire attitude towards the natural gas industry have now been challenged by geopolitics, sustainability issues, and public distrust. The scientific community and local communities have been reacting against the government, and by extension also the industry. In addition, the local communities feel that they have not been heard by their democratically elected representatives. The government wants to appease the industry and the economic wealth and growth that comes with it, while the scientific community points at the dangers of continued production of natural gas.

Meanwhile, Groningen is being tormented by subsidence and earthquakes. In this thesis, it is precisely the tension between the environment e.g. the agent of natural gas, the extraction of

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which has its own environmental effects, and civil society, science, governmental policies, and the natural gas industry complex that is in focus. The history of problems and concerns in connection with natural gas extraction show that the relations between the various actors have been entangled and problematic over time. As I will show here roles overlap and controlling and monitoring agencies rely on producers to provide data on impacts, meanwhile controlling agencies have no formal responsibility for reporting back to gas extraction agents. In this climate, civil society has responded with distrust. In addition, the local implications of the (onshore) industries have been concealed; debates and critical assessments within each field and on different scales have thus not been connected to each other.

In this thesis, I will trace the history of Dutch natural gas and its network and by this process attempt to disentangle the controversial situation of current-day natural gas extraction and production in the Netherlands. It must be stated already on the onset that it has not been possible to complete this endeavour in the scope I would have liked, considering the complexity of the subject, the many actors both in time and space, and the large corpus of potential sources. Instead, I chose to limit the scope of this thesis and have decided to focus on two breaking points, or case studies. Through analysis of involved actors, and in the process uncovering a natural gas network, I will highlight and explain discrepancies that exist among these actors present in the natural gas network. My aim is to research how the conflicting interests between the industry, government, academia, and local communities can be understood and explained, or reformulated into a main research question I will proceed to ask here:

Why are there different messages of failure and success in the natural gas network?

The thesis is structured into two parts: the first two chapters are rather descriptive in nature.

The second part of the thesis contains analyses of the specific case studies and more

analytical background. In this way the natural gas network can be shown both in theory and practice. The methodology section and the study of actors offers a theoretical frame for analysis, while the study of the two breaking points captured in individual case studies will demonstrate discrepancies in practice. Furthermore, analyses and conclusions regarding natural gas in the Netherlands have thus far only been partial, i.e. only focusing on small aspects found in the gas controversy. Moreover, such studies have not been connected to each other in a larger frame. My thesis is an attempt to this interdisciplinary end, as it tries to combine research and methods from different disciplines focused on one subject. By

employing an interdisciplinary composition, new, and at times combined, results are brought to light.

Scientific endeavours into (natural) resources, or fossil fuels, are rather extensive. Even when limiting a review geographically to the Netherlands, a lot of research has been, and is being done on the subject of natural gas. Most of this research however is in the field of natural science, and often through funding by the industry. There is however a strong

‗knowledge gap‘ concerning humanities research in this field. Although there is little academic literature on the subject from a humanities perspective, there are some studies available from social science. Examples include research into the housing market and liveability in earthquake region in Groningen² or studies of social impact of earthquakes in the same area.³ Research in both social and natural sciences does provide background material of value for my research, mostly in helping to create a (technical) understanding of

2 See: OTB – Research for the Built Environment, Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment, Delft University of Technology, 2016. Woningmarkt- en leefbaarheidsnderzoek aardbevingsgebied Groningen, January 2016.

3 See: Van der Voort, N., Vanclay, F. 2015. Social impacts of earthquakes caused by gas extraction in the Province of Groningen, The Netherlands. Environmental Impact Assessment Review 50, 1–15.

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natural gas, but here I want to delve deeper into how technological, environmental, and social factors interact to shape the use and debates of natural gas in the Netherlands. The European Union has also touched the subject slightly in the form of environmental impact assessments. These assessments evaluate both positive and negative environmental

consequences of projects, policies or programs. Spatial scientists Van der Voort and Vanclay (2015) argue that, in the light of new social concerns however it has been deemed necessary to revise or renew these assessments with a special focus on management of the impact of earthquakes in the province of Groningen (Van der Voort and Vanclay 2015: 2), which is in part what is being done in this thesis. Newspapers and other media have covered the subject of natural gas as well, and have helped shape the focus and the dialogue within this thesis.

Within academia there is strong debate on the subject of natural gas. Natural gas consumption on the one hand is prognosed to increase in twenty years (doubling in production in relation to today), as natural gas is becoming more and more important in global energy markets (Victor, Jaffe, and Hayes 2006: 306-361). On the other hand, these developments are questioned. Some researchers have for instance pointed out that the production output of conventional gas fields will decline from 2010 onwards, and that this can be considered a watershed in the production of natural gas in the Netherlands

(Weijermars and Luthi 2010: 3). Scientists employed by the industry call for a continuation of natural gas production in the same way for at least 50 years into the future (Botters 2009:

11-12). On the governmental level, similar discrepancies in the discussions on the future and direction of national gas occur. The government is the sole shareholder in the Dutch

company of Energy Management, EBN, which in a rapport stated that: ―now is the time to find and develop the remaining gas reserves and to mature the gas resources‖ (EBN 2015:

7). The Social Economic Council, SER, is an advisory board that advises the Dutch government and parliament. SER stated that they foresee that up until 2020 energy consumption will be decreasing. This statement suggests that within political arenas steps are being initiated to cut down energy consumption but that natural gas extraction will remain at present levels. In the Netherlands, an energy shift has been heralded in the form of wind energy, although wind power has been criticised on the basis that it: ―hardly [is]

contributing to a cleaner environment‖ to quote the Dutch governmental advisory board SER (2014). In short, there are different results and messages on the failure or success of natural gas, supported by various research data. Until very recently the impact and consequences of natural gas on a social level has been neglecting. Thus understanding the debates (and lack of discussions in some context) requires a careful contextual analysis of the roles and responsibilities within what I will call here the ‗gas network‘.

Internationally, fossil fuel is increasingly seen in a bad light. In the whole time period between 1751 and 2010, half of all CO² emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels occurred after 1986 showing the immense increase in fossil fuel emissions (Malm 2016:

328). The turn of the millennium served as a wake-up call: widespread awareness of the catastrophic implications of global warming became more common, and this development was understood to have an anthropocentric cause, i.e. man-made. Since 2000 the rate of growth in CO² emissions has been tripled, compared to the rates of the 1990s. Human ecologist Andreas Malm speaks of a ‗post-2000 emissions explosion‘ (Malm 2016: 328).

CO² emissions are effectively a global problem, and globalisation is another aspect to the emissions explosion issue: from the early 1980s up to 2008, world trade grew by 8 percent a year (Malm 2016: 329). To tackle the emissions problem counter-movements are being established as well. For instance via the Paris agreement and the equity clause, in which high income countries need to cut emissions further (United Nations 2015: 1-2). Relating to natural gas in this context; the continuation of extraction of natural gas is important as it produces lower emissions than other fossil fuels. However, even the cleanest of fossil fuels has considerate CO² emissions as well as being finite, and an overall cut of production of

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fossil fuels is therefore increasingly considered urgent. Thus, the dilemma has heightened the debate in Netherlands and also changed the course of discussions. I will return to this in my final chapter.

In what follows I will offer a roadmap to the rest of the thesis. The second chapter deals with methodology and will offer the reader insight into my inspirations, research tools, and the design of a synthesised method in order to study the actors and its network suitable for this thesis. The third chapter presents the involved actors by introducing them through a short history of each actor and their respective function. The third chapter also contains a short historisation and contextualisation of Dutch natural gas. In the final segment of this chapter the natural gas network is presented. The fourth and fifth chapter are based on two case studies, and the layout and connections of the natural gas network differ from each other, as well as from the third chapter, depending on the problem discussed, and the actors involved.

The fourth chapter revolves around the Earthquake of 2012 in Groningen, the strongest (induced) earthquake recorded to date. The actors as introduced in the third chapter will be followed and analysed within this context. The fifth chapter offers an analysis in a different yet similar vein; the problem of safety. In the wake of the 2012 earthquake, the Dutch Safety Board published a rapport in which the natural gas industry was blamed for negligence. The government, the industry, and the local communities in turn reacted to this rapport. The study of the developments within this context is central to this chapter. The sixth and final chapter opens up a discussion about the future. The chapter includes a short overview of national and international developments regarding natural gas, fossil fuels, and possible substitutes. The conclusion, and a suggestions section, summarise and connect the findings forwarded in this thesis and complete the analysis; and offer an answer to my research question. The aspects of the natural gas controversy, in the form of different messages of failure and success will be met with an explanation.

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Methodology (Theories & Methods)

In many ways, this thesis is the culmination of years of training and study. The chapter reflects my rather traditional training as an historian, combined with and inspired by the vastly interdisciplinary nature of environmental history. Environmental history also led me on to science and technology studies. Here, I draw on both environmental history and STS within the boundaries of my thesis. I expect the historian‘s gaze is present in most segments however, and hope to have forged an able synthesis of different academic disciplines in order to analyse controversies. In what follows below I will give a brief background to the academic context of how this thesis was shaped and its inspirational background.

Discussion and concern about the environment first became tangible in academia in the 1960s. At first, attempts to revaluate previous research and sources into the shaping field of environmental history concerned itself with interpreting for instance accounts of explorers and settlers (Robbins 2012: 66). The Annales school paved the way to this via the emphasis on historical patterns tied to the Longue Durée. Another academic current with significant influence was poststructuralism, again a French brainchild coming of age in the late 1960s.

Its effects on social theory in later years, especially through the works of Michel Foucault is methodologically an interesting entry-point as he introduced discourse – language, images, stories – which relates to social systems and practices (prisons, schools, academia, etc.) (Robbins 2012: 70), to which I will return in the final segment of this chapter.

Philosophically, matters were being re-evaluated in the 1960s as well, most notably relating to the subject-object divide or continuum – especially in relation to nature and the agency of nature. Nature has traditionally been seen as an object or as a force, called natura naturata and natura naturans respectively, this notion of nature as a force is the 1500s at least (Hinchcliffe 2007: 14). This understanding of nature and culture as separate and separable realms of agency is still strongly rooted in the rationales of modernity. According to human geographer Stephan Hinchcliffe, this division between the natural and the social in turn dictates a corresponding way of explaining events, which ‗mutes‘ matter (Hinchcliffe 2007:

45). This understanding of nature-culture as separate or disassociated has been increasingly re-evaluated, and this re-evaluation led to the understanding that non-human objects can be more than just a subject. This thesis is inspired by such representations of natural process as an agent, in this case natural gas, where gas extraction and physical effects of gas extraction completely affects the social contextualisation and problematisation of gas. Within science and technology studies scholars such as Latour and Law laid the first bricks of building a method to study the natural and social world as interacting agents through Actor-Network Theory. These new approaches cascaded into different academic disciplines and theories (such as for instance science and technology studies, hybrid geography, representational theory, political theory, materiality). One of the strongest claims inherent in most of these theories is the understanding that an object can be interpreted as something that is animate;

that although it is not human, it has the ability to act on its own and in relationship to humans and human acting. The notions of non-human agents as passive is restricted and obstructs us from using and studying non-human agents and its relationship to humans as an interesting analytical tool. Consider for instance water, which as an object to study and represent as if it was alive, as a thing that can act in a multitude of ways, independent of human interaction. Just as water, natural gas is studied here, has agency, its physicality or

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rather gaseous quality has its own agency. Here I will study in particular the physical effects of the extraction of gas and related debates of its effects in media, science, and policy. As I will show the quality of gas and its definition will change depending on the medium of representation and on who is representing gas. Thus the study object gas is also a subject and an active agent in the gas network, by studying gas through this perspective I will allow the definition of gas to change according to context, meaning that it can be interpreted in different ways, and offers new results. In what follows, I will continue to explain how theories of natural agency can be defined and interlinked with a study of natural gas.These theories are to be regarded as inspirational for the design and focus of this thesis rather than

‗operational‘, meaning that I have not included all theories in the analysis. The next segment is meant as an exploration of possible (new) theories and methods applicable to the study of natural gas.

2.1 Inspiration and Theory

My thesis owes much of its methodological approach to Actor-Network Theory (ANT), but insights and theories from other disciplines and theoretical frameworks have been influential in shaping the thesis as well; providing an aggregate of interdisciplinary perspectives, which in turn helped shape the method, analysis, and representation of the thesis.

The cornerstone, ANT, stems from science and technology studies, and in essence is a way of reassembling social connections. It was foremost created in order to deal with

controversies; it deals with associations of actors – and its configurations – and essentially traces down actors in order to form an analysis. This initially meant tracing down

controversy (Latour 2007: 16,53). It was developed most notably by Michel Callon, Bruno Latour, and John Law as a way of including objects into a social network. In ANT, both human and non-human actors can thus be part of an assemblage or association; this distribution is also called Agency. Assemblage, or association is meant as an extension of the terms ‗social‘ and ‗society‘ as it undermines the object-subject divide as I have already discussed above⁴ (Latour 2007: 237). The ambition may seem to be a bold one, but

nevertheless it was an ambition that has helped sprout new directions within relevant academia as already mentioned.

ANT has also been criticized: often critique states that ANT has no ‗other‘. Everything can be captured into a network and thus forms an all-relating ‗powerhouse‘, leaving no room for the unmapped, i.e. ―for those that do not lend their force to the emerging network in any unproblematic manner‖ (Hinchcliffe 2007: 55). To give a concrete example from this thesis, the actors and created networks only includes the active agents (e.g. those with

responsibility) or those acting. Strictly speaking, ANT should not interact with ‗unmapped‘

factors precisely because it plays no role in a network and simply leaves no trace (of interest to ANT). Attempts have been made to see the ‗outside‘ of a network as well; showing that social processes can be sensitive to differences that are not represented through a

conventional ANT analysis (Hinchcliffe 2007: 56). One example of how the invisible is made visible in a development of ANT is Annemarie Mol‘s analysis, presented in the Body Multiple and I will come back to her analyses later on in this chapter and exemplify how this is relevant to the controversy of gas.⁵ Another point of criticism of ANT lies in the concepts and understanding of agency as interlinked with ‗intentionality‘. One might argue that intentionality in the strict meaning of the word, i.e. a conscious action with an intended

4 The object-subject divide is, according to Latour, strictly polemic, as it limits the composition of the common world (Latour 2007: 246-247).

5 Another example is my own representation of the gas network where gas itself at first glance is made invisible as an actor but really lies at the core in defining the network.

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outcome, can be accredited to humans, but hardly to non-humans or things. However as I will show here, and have already commented above, nature and objects obtain agency through social relations e.g. in this case the way natural gas behaves or the physical effects of gas extraction makes humans define gas very differently. Hence, ANT is well suited to study controversies where associations of humans, non-humans and things are formed and can be traced, and where tracing that relationship can also help us better understand the controversy. The problem is that we confuse ‗agency‘ with ‗intentionality‘, not all human acts are intentional but no one would question that they are intentional. So it is not

intentionality that is the problem, but our definition of agency; agency in the context of human-nature happens in the relationship, not separately. Below, I will bring up the concept of ‗hyperobject‘ which harbours the idea that objects/problems transcend its physicality or locality and that it is amorphous and changing; this well exemplifies the agency and problem of gas as a hyperobject.⁶ I will develop this concept further on in this chapter to better

explain some of the difficulties rooted in the natural gas debate.

Political theorist Jane Bennett elaborates the inclusion of the non-human; arguing that the modern self is becoming increasingly entangled with non-human nature. Advocates of ANT argue that nature has always been strongly mixed with self and society, but that this

relationship has been intensifying and consequently has become harder to ignore (Bennett 2010: 116). Adjacent disciplinary fields share a rejection of polarized academic perceptions linked to nature and culture, and object and subject (Hinchcliffe 2007: 45). The notion that these matters play out in separate realms are no longer offered a place within their

frameworks but is instead treated equally and in ‗harmony‘ – ANT simply offers a way to these means in my study.

Returning to the theoretical framework and methodology, I will start by shortly introducing a theory and then connect it to (a short theoretical interpretation of) natural gas. Analytical interpretations of natural gas can be extended to be a political and natural object, or actor as defined above, a (vibrant) matter, a hyperobject, a practice and an enactment, and lastly, returning to ANT; as a controversy. Though I will not pursue all of these perspectives here, they deserve a mention as these perspectives all supplement the overarching Actor-Network Theory and potentially help shape an analytical configuration to study natural gas.

Most of the theories incorporated into this thesis have a strong political component. This is so, I reckon, as the natura agency directions have drawn on political theory. One such example is found within the discipline of political ecology, which has done much to change the scientific understanding of subject and object – most radically in the late 1980s. A result of this change was an expansion of urban ecological research, which in turn opened up a space for connecting certain bodies and subjects as a role of non-human actors and objects within political life (Robbins 2012: 89). This political ecology had a focus on both the human and the non-human. The narrative offered new ways of dealing with objects, networks and power as it included non-human entities which, just as human actors, could resist and create friction. This ‗power to resist‘ is what political ecologist Robbins has called

―nature talking back to conservation‖ (Robbins 2012: 124-125). Bruno Latour has shared similar insights in his publications: he argues that academic disciplines have been under a strong obligation to produce objects of nature, and incorporates them into society. However, this disregards social constructions and by extension acts as a tight noose on the study of objects and subjects. In his book, Politics of Nature, Latour argued that a political ecology of nature and things has freed us from these restrictions and allows humans and non-humans to be studied alongside of each other, and moreover to associate them with each other (Latour 2004: 52). Natural gas can be interpreted as inherently political as it becomes involved and

6 For a short explanation, see the next segment on Timothy Morton. For a longer explanation, see Morton, T. 2013.

Hyperobjects: Philosophy and Ecology after the End of the World. University of Minnesota Press, 2.

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is drawn into the world of human struggles and becomes entwined with humanity. Natural gas becomes part of a network that does not limit itself to say people or institutions, instead, all of these actors have leveraging power and influence (Robbins 2012: 23).

Another way of interpreting natural gas is as what Jane Bennett (2010:6) calls a ‗vibrant matter‘. The concept was introduced by Bennett and implies that matter has a certain vitality; things can ―impede or block the will and design of humans and even acts as (quasi) agents or forces with trajectories, propensities, or tendencies of their own‖ (Bennett 2010:

6). The theory builds on political understandings sketched above. Yet, Bennett argues that vibrant matter and lively things together corrode the borders between subjectivity, society, and machines (Bennett 2010: 120). In this case, natural gas certainly has a vitality; by its physicality and related responses to extraction it acquires power as an actant taking a role in a complex debate, and with very physical and tangible effects in the form of subsidence and earthquakes.

The theory of the hyperobject is a very interesting addition to the concept of non-human actors as well. Philosopher Timothy Morton has a strong interest in object-oriented ontology⁷ and as a byproduct developed a way in which objects that are distributed in an enormous capacity, can transcend locality: hyperobjects are not just collections, systems, or assemblages but are so powerful that they form an object of their own: the hyperobject (Morton 2013: 2). An interesting segment of this theory is the recognition that hyperobjects are phased: they are impossible to see as a whole definable object or subject; it is only possible to see parts of it at a time or in a space. This transdimensional quality that allows for non-locality and temporality is tied to the study of natural gas, in the sense that the subject matter changes and takes new forms, as for instance is made clear in the induced earthquakes. The induced earthquakes are physically real and definable, yet they are merely a snapshot of a very complex and also a definable real larger object-subject of natural gas that can be defined as a hyperobject (Morton 2013: 70).

Philosopher Annemarie Mol has written an interesting book that was in part an ethnography of a disease (based on empirical data that consists of fieldwork she did at a Dutch hospital – observations, interviews with doctors and patients alike) and in part extended the analysis of atherosclerosis as it was not just a disease, but also an enactment. The necessity that comes with enactment is illustrated in several ways; if a person is not diagnosed with

atherosclerosis, the person does not have the disease until a visit to the doctor. Only then can the disease be enacted. These events are shaped by participation and through enactment and effectively form a network – loaning from the works of Latour and Law. In essence, a disease therefore is being done. It must be constructed, or assembled. In order to capture multiplication some sort of framework is needed. And since Mol argues that objects need to be traced – just as Latour – a network offers her that framework.

Mol‘s book then can be placed in a larger whole of studies which change their emphasis from a certain gaze upon objects to following an object through its enactment in practice.

This means that knowledge does not have a point of reference or statements about reality, but instead a practice that interferes with other practices (Mol 2002: 152-153). Mol finds that there is a coexistence of multiple objects, and that these were localised. Mol interprets local as the other side of the coin of universalism, meaning that it is valid everywhere with no particular roots. In a similar way as the study and approach presented by Mol, natural gas can be interpreted as an enactment tied to practices. Why has natural gas become

controversial only in the last few years? Because we have diagnosed ourselves with an ecological problem: (that is directly linked with) natural gas – it only had to become enacted

7 Note that this movement has a strong sense of non-anthropocentric thinking.

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for it to become a controversy. As a practice, natural gas can become multiple, and shows overlap with the hyperobject.

The notion of practice has since then sprung up in other studies as well. Human geographer Stephan Hinchcliffe argues in his book Geographies of Nature that nature is being done; it materialises as an active partner through practice of nature. Non-humans are lively and dynamic as they too have the power to shape and make (Hinchcliffe 2007: 1). Hinchcliffe mentions Latour‘s notion of abolishing Nature (and its contingent divisions and muting of a non-human world), but Hinchcliffe argues this has two silencing effects. Coupling these effects to natural gas this could mean that gas and the physicalities around it would behave in a certain way because it is told to do so: it must follow certain rules and laws. Second, natural gas would be limited to follow scripts which are non-negotiable (Hinchcliffe 2007:

2-3). In order to capture natural gas‘ multiplicity is to see it as part of the social context in which it is put, whether it is colored or even conditioned by it. The language and ideas form their basis, and are used to identify, describe, and explain the natural world influenced by the society in which we live (Hinchcliffe 2007: 27). The trajectory that has been sketched

stemming from a single reality, to a multiplicity can thus be captured through discourse and association. Following this line of thought, natural gas could be analyzed via a contested history of nature, but a better way would be to give it a complex present. Instead of understanding the multiplicity of natural gas as just a gas, it can be extended to include practices by and with people, habits, places, institutions.

Controversy and conflict are closely intertwined with science. Scientific debates rooted in controversy are more than often portrayed in the media as well. A presupposition is present which offers a single objective truth, brought to us by this science. But as Mol has argued, conflicts and controversies only exist when closure or resolution is attempted, and is thus a rare event. Besides these moments, different practices can co-exist. It is here where non- human entities are multiple and alive with internal and external difference (Hinchcliffe 2007: 90). Hinchcliffe points out that instead of administration or bureaucracy being problematic, it is the way in which such matters are done and enacted which allows for particular forms to which we usually are in dispute about. Ontological politics should therefore involve itself in making realities (Hinchcliffe 2007: 187). Mol and Hinchcliffe develop ANT further from its origins as a tool to following actors in a controversy, and constitutes enactments and multiplicity of very real tangible physical realities. Although the essence is to find and analyze controversy, it is not necessary to limit analytical tools and understandings to its ramifications. For instance here, I employ a vaster set of theoretical insights to construct an aggregate of disciplines; which together help form an extended method. ANT will be the main tool to sketch the actors and outline of the natural gas controversy, but the thesis not limited by ANT. Theoretical interpretations concerning natural gas can both act as an illustration and as a clarification.

2.2 Method

The theory and methods discussed in this chapter serve as a tool to renew, broaden, and deepen the understanding of natural gas controversy. As Bennett pointed out, and already discussed matter, in this case natural gas has a vitality as earthquakes are ‗done‘ (or enacted, to paraphrase Mol) by natural gas extraction and production. Natural gas, in the words of Hinchcliffe, thus ‗talks back to us‘ and increasing earthquakes and subsidence through continued natural gas extraction enacts controversy. The method in this thesis is centred around ANT as outlined in the previous paragraph, and is inspired by scholars using similar approaches as reviewed above. By employing ANT as adjusted to this research context, I will here follow the various actors that have impacted the natural gas debate in the

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Netherlands. I will also examine practices, interactions, reactions, and decisions made by said actors regarding natural gas as revealed from official reports. My sources for mapping and following the actors are largely through published documents. As a result, this thesis is largely built around the analysis of official documents. The bulk of these sources ranges from the 2000s forward – most of which are very recent. In addition, many sources and bits of information are written in Dutch and I have tried to translate these bits as best as possible where needed. To standardize the analyses of reports I have used a form of discourse

analysis. However, I have used discourse analysis in its most basic form, i.e. tracing the use of certain words and how they appear together, rather than a comprehensive analysis including inner logic in texts or normative frameworks (Fairclough and Fairclough 2012:

240-241). The keyword search method that I have devised is, I believe, very suitable to address the topic of this thesis in an additional sense. It helps to illustrate actors, and how they can be different or overlapping on an operational level. In this form of discourse analysis I look at certain keywords found in published documents, for instance the keyword

‗earthquake‘ (starting on page 31), in order to find varying degrees of convergence or divergence in regard to other actors and the gas network, as well as offer the reader insight in how actors represent themselves in text.

The most common type of official document is the annual reports, or status report of various actors. These sources are the most widespread and easily accessible data that delve deeper than the often very general information found online. In some cases, more data could be found in for instance histories of certain companies or governmental departments, but for most actors annual reports were the only valid option – even more so as all actors have published these, making it easier to compare them. Annual reports are suitable for this study precisely because they are official statements and as such are reflective of the

problematisations and enactments of natural gas in the represented organisations. However, the use of annual reports also has its downfalls as these reports often have very concentrated subjects and rarely stray from the subjects included in a specific report; this is just something that has to be accepted considering the accessibility and comparability of data from the actors. Other sources include EU and national directives, regulations and legal acts that hold relevance to my research and that will be referred to here. Rapports and investigations, as well as press releases, statements, and reactions to the former (exposing polemics) have been included in order to counterweight any bias that a singular source could have, i.e. a partial perspective or an inclination towards an explanation, or for instance due to conflict of interest or the nature of an annual report. As a result, the inclusion of different sources and actors creates a dialogue. Lastly, websites of actors have been consulted as well, and references will include a link to these pages. Most of these official documents are authored by an institution instead of individuals. Zooming out again, the case studies focus most on publications of official documents by actors in the natural gas network – as discussed above, in most cases these official documents consist of status, annual, or scientific reports, and have been selected and used due to their accessibility – and follows roughly three points that tie into the method of Actor-Network Theory: 1) association of entities i.e. actors and organisations to show and pinpoints the dynamics found in the natural gas debate 2) a discourse-analytic⁸ study of appearance, disappearance, and usage of forceful words and linkages 3) juxtaposition, analysis, and discussion of the actors and its network.

The combination of the different sources helped me to create a methodology which I employed to map the controversies regarding natural gas in the last few years, and to allow the actors involved to have a voice. This in essence means that it leaves me to trace out the

8 Method of analysing semiotics (i.e. written, vocal, or sign language) based on the theoretical approaches of Michel Foucault. This thesis lacks a theoretical foundation of discourse analysis, as this method is something that has to be specifically applied to certain discourses and consequently has to be re-invented each time it is used.

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actors and analyse the conflict, as will be done in the next few chapters. In order to create a thesis within the confines of an MA, two case studies have been studied; delineating a time and space. The case studies centre around two conflicts; the 2012 earthquake and the problem of safety. In order to study both case studies and keep them comparable, official documents have been selected for discourse analysis that have overlap between both controversies, or share agency. Prior to the analyses of the actual case studies however, I will dedicate a third chapter to mapping the actors and stakeholders in practice and debates around natural gas in the Netherlands. This background will be necessary in order to signify that agency, and understand the coming analyses of the case studies of the fourth and fifth chapter. Without a background and introduction to the actors, the responsibilities, the interdependence and relations between them would be hard to explain, and even more so their individual and grouped connections in the natural gas network. Besides this needed introduction, I will also offer a framed explanation to each actor‘s nature in the debate in three distinct types. This classification helps to pinpoint overlapping responsibilities, and helps to better illustrate the diagrams. The next chapter is entirely dedicated to place the actors in the natural gas network.

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The Actors

It could be argued that the number of actors that can be incorporated within the subject of natural gas are abundant, but by choosing two case studies and interlinked controversies, the subject becomes much easier to trace, and only distils the actors involved in the

controversies that are the basis of the case studies. As such, the process of tracing down actors that have in one way or another played a part can easily be described as a nit-picking practice. However, a closer look will show that the decision of including or excluding an actor is actually very straightforward. Although the selection of actors can be regarded as arbitrary I hope that the final paragraph of this chapter will make clear that the actors selected within this thesis are the ones with activity in a network – as these actors have left traces in the natural gas network. In order to narrow down and explicate these actors as fruitfully and analytically as possible, the actors have been divided into several types. An actor can have a particular character, based on what kind of responsibility it carries. By using responsibility as a distinguishing factor I placed each actor in its own actor type, which can be investigative, legislative, or executive in nature. Overlap is possible, but the division helps to better pinpoint an actor‘s relevance, meaning, and relationship in a network. In what follows I will introduce the first actor type, the investigative actors.

3.1 Investigative Actors

Investigate actors are strongly rooted within academic environments and maintain a strong sense of independence, although tracing their funding will often reveal certain relations or research interests. Universities as an institution play a marginal role within the natural gas network, and were originally part of this chapter. However, as I explored the cases I found that most scholars with a clear interest or expertise within relevant disciplines can be found acting in spheres outside of the university. Other academics will often be found working within the organisations of investigative actors – which eliminates the necessity to incorporate them as a separate group or actor. Apart from their academic character,

investigative actors often have political ties as well, either through funding or function. I will exemplify this below when introducing each actor.

3.1.1 KNMI

The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) is an institute mostly known for its national weather forecasting, although it is a research and information centre that also monitors climate change and seismic activity. KNMI is an independent government agency and is officially part of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment (KNMI 2016).

KNMI was founded on January 31 in 1854 by royal decree as an institute of astronomy and meteorology. In the course of the 20^th century KNMI also started research on seismology.

KNMI is one of the most well-known research institutes, and has great social responsibility.

Most publications today are on meteorological and seismological topics or climate research.

KNMI is most known for its public activities such as weather forecast, or giving warning to extreme weather conditions (Koninklijke Bibliotheek 2016).

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3.1.2 SER

The Social and Economic Council (SER) is an advisory board that advises the Dutch Government and Parliament on socioeconomic policy. The council consists of representatives from three different groups: independent Crown-appointed members, employers, and employees (SER 2016).

SER was founded in 1950 after a long discussion on social and economic order in the Netherlands, especially concerning the role of government and social organisations. As a part of the recovery after the Second World War, it was agreed in 1950 that the government should actively direct economic growth, employment, and social security. After the Second World War it was also agreed that the government should not be the sole agent in these endeavours; therefore SER was founded and since then has continued to advise the political sphere for over sixty years. Over the years, the council has expanded into undertaking activities from governance tasks and self-regulatory matters and has started to function as a discussion platform for social and economic issues, for instance through counsel between consumer and interbranch organisations about terms and conditions (Parlement and Politiek 2017).

3.1.3 TCBB

The Technical Commission on Ground Movement (TCBB) is an independent committee which advises on the relations between prospecting and extracting of minerals and ground movement. TCBB consists of experts ranging from geology to law.

Since 2003 TCBB has had three main tasks (in relation to extraction of mineral resources):

advising the minister of Economic Affairs, and advising citizens on both damage and reimbursement (TCBB 2015).

3.1.4 TNO

The Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) is a non-profit company that focuses on applied science research for companies, government bodies, and public organisations. It is the largest research institute in the Netherlands (TNO 2016).

TNO was founded by law in 1932. Its purpose is to make scientific research applicable for companies and government bodies, while at the same time being independent of its

employees (TNO 2016). TNO has played an important role as a knowledge centre since its founding. In 1985, the law that enabled TNO was revised and restructured (i.e. granted more independence to the organisation) and TNO became more commercial in nature, leading to an increase in contract research, i.e. outsourced research services (Lintsen, Schippers, Berkers, van Rooij, Buiter 2012).

3.1.5 OVV

The Dutch Safety Board (OVV) is a so called quango (quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisation) that researches the causes and consequences of disasters and incidents in the Netherlands.

Research into the causes of disasters and accidents has been carried out since the early 1900s by the Maritime Court of the Netherlands (1909), the Inland Waterways Disaster Committee (1931), the Civil Aviation Board (1937), and the Railway Accidents Inquiry Board (1956).

Although the investigations were carried out independently, the inspections were carried out by the Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management. In the 1990s the call for investigations by an independent investigation agency led to the establishment of the

Council of Transport Safety in 1999. Several developments within the Dutch safety climate

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and politics led to realisation that only the transportation sector had independent research by a permanent agency, and that other sectors should be included as well. To ensure this

inclusion, the Dutch Safety Board was founded in 2005 and not only focuses on transport, but also on defence, industry, trade, health care, nature, environment, and crisis management and relief (OVV 2016).

3.2 Legislative Actors

Legislative actors are strongly rooted into political constellations and are often tied to political bodies and government. Only those departments or other agencies with direct involvement in natural gas are considered of importance here and are consequently included as actors in the natural gas network.

3.2.1 EU

The European Union (EU) is a politico-economic union with supranational and

intergovernmental ability; it holds many institutions and works towards standardisation, internalisation, and unification of its members on a variety of aspects (for instance law, currency, or agriculture).⁹

Since the 1990s the EU has been trying to liberalise the electricity and gas markets for its members. Prior to this change, most of these markets were monopolised by either the EU or a member State. In order to enable competition, these monopolies have gradually been dismantled. The so-called first liberalisation directives for gas were adopted in 1998 and transposed to consequent member states in 2000 (EU 2012).The liberalization directives had effects on the Dutch market in terms of restructuring GasTerra (see 3.3.2).

3.2.2 MEZ

The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MEZ) carries responsibility for the Dutch economy, ranging from trade and industry to agricultural education and conservation. As one of the ministries of Dutch government, MEZ is located in The Hague.

The roots of the ministry stem as far back as 1819 as the Ministry of Commerce and Colonies, and has included agriculture and mining since 1877. In 1906 MEZ became the department of Water, Agriculture, Industry and Commerce. The department kept being reshaped over time and in the post-war period the name Economic Affairs was finally

established in 1946. Since 1978 a state secretary has been appointed. (Parlement and Politiek 2016). In 2010 the Ministry of Economic Affairs was fused with the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality and became the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation. The name Economic Affairs has however been kept as an abbreviation.

3.2.3 SODM

The State Supervision of Mines (SODM) is an independent government agency that

supervises the statutory regulations applicable to mineral exploration, extraction, storage and transport of minerals, focusing on the aspects of health, safety, the environment, effective extraction and soil movements. As a governmental organisation, SODM is located in The Hague. SODM is also connected to the Ministry of Socials Affairs and Employment (for labour laws); the Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment (for

environmental legislations); and the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (for criminal investigations).

9 For a more in-depth introduction and further information on the EU I suggest a visit to www.europa.eu.

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SODM came into being already during the Napoleonic Era in 1810. The Netherlands were part of France, and this incorporation entailed, among many other changes, the introduction of the French mining code. This code directly resulted in the establishment of SODM on April 21 1810. The organisation was initially concerned with supervising quarries; in later years coal mines became the centre of attention up until the closing of these mines in the 1960s and 1970s. Instead, in line with the developments in the field, oil and gas extraction became the prime subject of its operations (SODM 2012). As of 2010, all mining

supervision that was left has been handed over to the respective provinces.

3.3 Executive Actors

Executive actors are actors that hold direct responsibility for any form of extraction, production or selling of natural gas. These are most often genuine businesses with great specialisation in natural gas. The executive actors carry out the operations of natural gas (e.g. prospecting, extraction, and distribution) and have in essence been unaltered since their introduction. The roles and responsibilities of the executive actors do overlap with

investigative (technology and development) and legislative (political) bodies but are very different from them in function.

3.3.1 EBN

Dutch Energy Management (EBN) is a state-owned organisation which is responsible for the income obtained by the Dutch State from gas and oil extraction on Dutch surface

(Government of the Netherlands 2016). However, the initiative for exploration and

extraction is taken by the gas and oil companies. EBN provides such companies with support and invests in them financially but with a substantial interest. EBN is represented by the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, as EBN‘s sole shareholder. EBN also has interests in gas collection pipes at sea, underground gas storages on land and a 40% interest in GasTerra, the wholesale company in natural gas (EBN 2016).

EBN finds its origins in DSM – a Dutch multinational specialised in chemicals, which was founded in 1973 as a means to gather all natural gas interests in a juridical unit. DSM in turn originated from the State Mines in Limburg¹⁰, hence DSM: Dutch State Mines. In 1989 the State took over all shares of DSM Aardgas, and EBN was established (Rijksoverheid 2016;

EBN 2016).

3.3.2 GasTerra

GasTerra is a wholesaler specialised in gas. It both buys and sells gas from Dutch and foreign producers. Gasterra is a private company with four shareholders: the Dutch State (10%), EBN (40%), Shell (25%), and Esso (25%). Gasterra‘s customers are electric utilities, industries, and other large customers (GasTerra 2016).

Gasterra is rooted in the Dutch Gas Union¹¹ - which was founded to organise the increase in sale of natural gas (as a result of grand-scale production of natural gas in the Groningen gas field). More recently however, the EU has been trying to liberalise the European gas market. As a response, the Dutch Gas Union was split into two entities. One would focus on the supply and sale (GasTerra) and one on transportation and storage (Dutch Gas Union).

The latter remained 100% controlled by the Dutch State (Gasunie 2016).

10 One of the twelve provinces of the Netherlands located in the southeast of the country bordering.

11 Nederlandse Gasunie, author‘s translation.

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23 3.3.3 NAM

The Dutch Petroleum Company, or Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij (NAM), is half owned by Shell, half owned by Exxon Mobil. NAM is in charge of production of natural gas and petroleum in the Netherlands. It also tracks down these substances on Dutch soil – be it on land or at sea (NAM 2016b).

NAM was founded in 1947 as a direct result from finding natural gas in Schoonebeek, Drenthe¹² and has since then been searching for and excavating natural gas in the

Netherlands. In 1962 the government stated that the Groningen gas field would be exploited by one partnership, NAM would receive half of all its interest (Van Montfrans 1988). In recent years, NAM has been the centre of attention regarding the earthquakes due to natural gas extraction in the Netherlands.

3.4 Remaining Actors

In this section more ‗unconventional‘ actors are included. With use of the word unconventional is meant here, that they are not being fully possible to include in the categories above, but as has been pointed out in the previous chapter, these voices left tangible traces and subsequently can be traced and ‗voiced‘. In addition, extra (historical) emphasis is put on natural gas as an actor, because it is both an actor, and a network consisting of actors, as well as the main subject of this thesis.

3.4.1 Natural gas

The earliest usage of the word gas actually dates back to a Flemish chemist around the 1650s (Online Etymology Dictionary 2017); he coined the Dutch-language term as a derivation of the Greek khaos meaning empty space. It is both coincidental and interesting that the word gas originated in the Dutch language, and that its meaning so closely relates to current-day issues with natural gas. However, natural gas in the Netherlands has a much deeper

prehistory, as it has been in the making for the last three hundred million years. This process started when the Netherlands was a low-lying swampy area close to the equator. There was a tropical climate due to its proximity to the equator, allowing it to be very hot and humid. In this environment, rich flora and fauna could flourish, but were swallowed over time by the swamps. As the sea levels rose, new layers of sand or clay were dropped onto the former layers, which in turn became coal and increased in heat. This process would eventually allow the release of natural gas (Gasterra 2016; TNO 2016).

The Netherlands have been aware of their riches in the soil, but since the late Middle Ages mostly focused on peat and coal extraction. From 1600 onward several overseas colonies were established as well; supplying the Netherlands which an abundance of fuels and riches.

Most notably during the 17^th century, the period dubbed as the Dutch Golden Age, the Netherlands had been an enormous empire, with colonies all over the world. However, colonies often traded hands and were subject to international power relations; in terms of use of energy this meant that energy sources were not always constant. In the 20^th century the two World Wars also had great consequences for a small country so close to the epicentre.

The post-war decolonisation process quickly ended the age-old supply of (cheap) foreign supplies. In the aftermath of the Second World War, colonial empires were dismantled.¹³ In the context of the Netherlands; decolonisation took on two forms. In the first the Netherlands

12 Another Dutch province, located in the northeast, bordering the province of Groningen.

13 This process was fuelled by discontentment of the educated elite in the colonies and because the great victors (The USA and the Soviet Union) disapproved of European imperialism.

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Antilles and Suriname were turned into constituent countries of the Kingdom of the

Netherlands (in 1953), and in the latter the Netherlands East Indies (1949) and Netherlands New Guinea (1962) formed an independent Indonesia. Especially the latter areas were of extreme importance in regard to trade, goods, and fossil fuels and this trade had to be replaced in order to prevent further stagnation of an already greatly weakened state.

Indonesia harbours many raw materials and fossil fuels, which were no longer up for grabs.

This led to investigations on domestic land so that these riches could be substituted.

It was in the time of this loss of colonies and linked revenues that experimentation with natural gas was introduced. The first finding of natural gas economically viable for extraction was found in 1948 by NAM. Until 1959 small gas field were found across the northern provinces of the Netherlands, but the discovery of the Groningen gas field in 1959 was the real game changer, pushing the Netherlands towards increased natural gas usage.

The Groningen gas field is one of the largest natural gas fields in the world and since its discovery it has been used extensively, both for domestic production and also for export.

The field singlehandedly accounts for half of all natural gas production in the Netherlands.

The gas field has been very important for the post-war development of the Netherlands, and natural gas has become a significant resource in the Netherlands ever since. Virtually every Dutch household runs on natural gas. The Groningen gas field has even been included in the Canon of Dutch History (a compulsory primary and secondary school subject). However, even though the gas production initially greatly boosted the post-war development of the Netherlands, the Groningen gas field quickly led to a decline in the manufacturing sector.

This was explained as a causal relationship: quick economic development due to new raw materials leads to a decline in other sectors. This phenomenon took place during the oil crisis in the 1970s, giving name to what has been named the ‗Dutch disease‘ in 1977. Dutch businesses could not compete well abroad as exchange rates grew askew and unemployment skyrocketed. The Economist claimed that the Dutch disease was due to that [Dutch] natural gas was (only) being used for consumptive and socialist political purposes. Instead of just making profit, forms of preservation were introduced in order to restrict gas outtake from the Groningen gas field. This led to the development of more smaller gas fields, both onshore as well as offshore, which enabled the Netherlands to keep the gas engine running

(Roggenkamp and Tempelman 2012: 523).

By the 1970s, natural gas had become completely dominant in Dutch society, a process that has been exponentially boosted by the discovery of the Groningen gas field. The

Netherlands have been using domestic natural gas heavily ever since. Although natural gas is considered as one of the cleanest fossil fuels it still has a contribution to global carbon emissions (Hölsgens 2014: 19, 28) and more recently has had a big impact on the

environment of the extraction region in Slochteren, Groningen in the form of earthquakes, as I will discuss more in the fourth chapter.

3.4.2 Locals

Since the extraction and production of natural gas became a grand scale endeavour from the 1960s onward – largely focussed in the province Groningen – local communities have been affected by and interacting with changes in the landscape, the soil, the surroundings, and even their houses. In more recent years locals have begun to form groupings which have increasingly started to play a role in the natural gas debate.

3.4.2.1 GGB

The Groninger Ground Movement (GBB) is a community organisation created for the defence of interests of the victims of natural gas extraction in Groningen (GBB 2016). The

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organisation was founded in 2009 with the main purpose of protecting the interests of members who have (emotional and/or financial) damage as a direct or indirect result of natural gas extraction in the Groningen area. Since the 2012 and 2014 earthquakes the GBB also focuses on the safety of its inhabitants and the organisation also raises awareness of the effects of gas extraction through the news and the media (GBB 2017). I will refer to GBB documents in the analysis chapters (chapter 4 and 5), and it needs to be pointed out that most often these documents are written by scholars commissioned by GBB, but all documents referred to as GBB are collected and hosted by GBB who is also the publisher.

3.5 Uncovering the Network

All actors have been introduced and can now be incorporated into a (natural gas) network.

The visual representation (figure 1) shows how actors are interconnected, and sometimes even intraconnected. Now that the natural gas network has been defined, I can return to my research question, and begin to explore why there are different messages of failure and success in the natural gas network. Natural gas is both an actor, most notably in the form of earthquakes and subsidence, but also the network. Natural gas lies at the core of the network as all actors are connected through the extraction of natural gas and its effects. In the coming chapters I will also show how depending on the context and interpretation of natural gas extraction (and the physical effects of its extractions) the gas network changes, as the interrelationships between the actors change, depending on what controversy is analysed.

Figure 1: The natural gas network in the Netherlands. Investigative actors are shown in blue, legislative actors in green, executive actors in purple, and the remaining actors in red.

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Analysis: The Earthquake of 2012

Natural gas has been one of the fundaments of Dutch economy for over half a century, although its downsides have been known for a long time. It was for instance known that the extraction of natural gas would eventually lead to subsidence. However, in earlier gas extraction times, the negative effects were considered as an inconvenience – affecting only the people living near extraction areas. Financial compensation was often enough for those who fell victim to problems related to subsidence. The earthquake of 2012 near Huizinge however, changed this perception (OVV 2015a: 6). The earthquake was the largest induced event known in Dutch history and was recorded near the Groningen gas field. The

earthquake was recorded as 3.6¹⁴ and led to national public concern (SODM 2015b:4).

The 2012 earthquake was more intense, and lasted longer than all previous recorded earthquakes in the area: people even went out into the streets out of concern (OVV 2015a:

52). The role of gas depletion in inducing seismic activity has been under investigation since the 2012 earthquake (TNO 2015: 9).

To illustrate the uniqueness of induced earthquakes in general, and the Huizinge earthquake in particular, I gathered information and data on natural gas extraction sites, locations of (induced) earthquakes, and natural gas reservoirs in the Netherlands. The data is presented here using ArcGIS. ArcGIS (geographic information system) is a computer programme that analyses and visualizes geographic data (ESRI 2017). Most data used here were found on the website and database of KNMI and was joined and configured in order to illustrate relevant data in figures. These figures will foremost show the difference between induced and natural earthquakes in the Netherlands, as well as the connection of induced earthquakes to the locations of (active) gas fields.

1986 marks the first registered earthquake in the Netherlands that was credited to, or suspected to, have been caused by natural gas extraction (KNMI 2017a). As can be seen on figure 2, the locations of the induced and natural earthquakes differ geographically and over large areas by Dutch standards. In the last 100 years, most natural earthquakes have occurred in the south of the Netherlands, with only one exception to the west, while nearly all induced variants are found in the Groningen province; not including a few earthquakes in the North Sea (another place of natural gas extraction not included in this master thesis). In addition, earthquakes used to be quite an anomaly in the Netherlands, and hardly left any damage due to their generally very small impact. Induced earthquakes however are a new phenomenon and are becoming stronger, and more frequent than previously.

14 Refers to the Richter magnitude scale. = local magnitude (SODM 2015b: 5-6).

Nurturing Natural Gas: Conflict and Controversy of Natural Gas Extraction in the Netherlands

Tim Goossens