IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/anresc/v61y2018i1d10.1007_s00168-018-0861-x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Crime and natural resource booms: evidence from unconventional natural gas production

Author

Listed:
  • Timothy M. Komarek

    (Old Dominion University)

Abstract

The USA has experienced a sudden expansion of oil and natural gas production due to the combination of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling. The energy extraction boom has had many localized impacts, most notably in areas with substantial shale gas reserves. This paper exploits a natural experiment in the Marcellus region to examine one channel of the so-called resource curse, the effect of resource extraction on local crime. The results show that areas experiencing a natural gas extraction boom suffer an increase in overall violent crimes, while property crimes remain similar to non-boom areas. Furthermore, the violent crime increase appears to be driven primarily by increases in aggravated and sexual assaults.

Suggested Citation

  • Timothy M. Komarek, 2018. "Crime and natural resource booms: evidence from unconventional natural gas production," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 61(1), pages 113-137, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:anresc:v:61:y:2018:i:1:d:10.1007_s00168-018-0861-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s00168-018-0861-x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00168-018-0861-x
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s00168-018-0861-x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Steven C. Deller & Melissa A. Deller, 2010. "Rural Crime and Social Capital," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(2), pages 221-275, June.
    2. Gary S. Becker, 1974. "Crime and Punishment: An Economic Approach," NBER Chapters, in: Essays in the Economics of Crime and Punishment, pages 1-54, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Maniloff, Peter & Mastromonaco, Ralph, 2017. "The local employment impacts of fracking: A national study," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 62-85.
    4. Kirsten Hardy & Timothy W. Kelsey, 2015. "Local income related to Marcellus shale activity in Pennsylvania," Community Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 46(4), pages 329-340, October.
    5. Timothy J. Bartik, 1991. "Who Benefits from State and Local Economic Development Policies?," Books from Upjohn Press, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, number wbsle, August.
    6. Joshua D. Angrist & Jörn-Steffen Pischke, 2009. "Mostly Harmless Econometrics: An Empiricist's Companion," Economics Books, Princeton University Press, edition 1, number 8769.
    7. Earl L. Grinols & David B. Mustard, 2006. "Casinos, Crime, and Community Costs," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 88(1), pages 28-45, February.
    8. Guy Michaels, 2011. "The Long Term Consequences of Resource‐Based Specialisation," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 121(551), pages 31-57, March.
    9. White, Nancy, 2012. "A Tale of Two Shale Plays," The Review of Regional Studies, Southern Regional Science Association, vol. 42(2), pages 107-119, Summer.
    10. Paredes, Dusan & Komarek, Timothy & Loveridge, Scott, 2015. "Income and employment effects of shale gas extraction windfalls: Evidence from the Marcellus region," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 112-120.
    11. Gary Solon & Steven J. Haider & Jeffrey M. Wooldridge, 2015. "What Are We Weighting For?," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(2), pages 301-316.
    12. Rickman, Dan S. & Wang, Hongbo & Winters, John V., 2017. "Is shale development drilling holes in the human capital pipeline?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 283-290.
    13. Frederick van der Ploeg, 2011. "Natural Resources: Curse or Blessing?," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 49(2), pages 366-420, June.
    14. Barry G. Rabe & Christopher Borick, 2013. "Conventional Politics for Unconventional Drilling? Lessons from Pennsylvania's Early Move into Fracking Policy Development," Review of Policy Research, Policy Studies Organization, vol. 30(3), pages 321-340, May.
    15. Jason Brown, 2014. "Production of natural gas from shale in local economies: a resource blessing or curse?," Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, issue Q I, pages 1-29.
    16. Morgan Kelly, 2000. "Inequality And Crime," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 82(4), pages 530-539, November.
    17. Komarek, Timothy M., 2016. "Labor market dynamics and the unconventional natural gas boom: Evidence from the Marcellus region," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 1-17.
    18. Weber, Jeremy G., 2012. "The effects of a natural gas boom on employment and income in Colorado, Texas, and Wyoming," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(5), pages 1580-1588.
    19. James, Alexander & Smith, Brock, 2017. "There will be blood: Crime rates in shale-rich U.S. counties," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 125-152.
    20. Ricardo C. Gazel & Dan S. Rickman & William N. Thompson, 2001. "Casino gambling and crime: a panel study of Wisconsin counties," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 22(1-3), pages 65-75.
    21. Brown, Jason P. & Fitzgerald, Timothy & Weber, Jeremy G., 2016. "Capturing rents from natural resource abundance: Private royalties from U.S. onshore oil & gas production," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 23-38.
    22. Elizabeth U. Cascio & Ayushi Narayan, 2022. "Who Needs a Fracking Education? The Educational Response to Low-Skill-Biased Technological Change," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 75(1), pages 56-89, January.
    23. Dan Black & Terra McKinnish & Seth Sanders, 2005. "The Economic Impact Of The Coal Boom And Bust," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 115(503), pages 449-476, April.
    24. Cotti, Chad D. & Walker, Douglas M., 2010. "The impact of casinos on fatal alcohol-related traffic accidents in the United States," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(6), pages 788-796, December.
    25. Corden, W Max & Neary, J Peter, 1982. "Booming Sector and De-Industrialisation in a Small Open Economy," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 92(368), pages 825-848, December.
    26. Grant D. Jacobsen & Dominic P. Parker, 2016. "The Economic Aftermath of Resource Booms: Evidence from Boomtowns in the American West," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 126(593), pages 1092-1128, June.
    27. Arellano, M, 1987. "Computing Robust Standard Errors for Within-Groups Estimators," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 49(4), pages 431-434, November.
    28. Hunt Allcott & Daniel Keniston, 2014. "Dutch Disease or Agglomeration? The Local Economic Effects of Natural Resource Booms in Modern America," NBER Working Papers 20508, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    29. Haggerty, Julia & Gude, Patricia H. & Delorey, Mark & Rasker, Ray, 2014. "Long-term effects of income specialization in oil and gas extraction: The U.S. West, 1980–2011," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 186-195.
    30. Sachs, Jeffrey D. & Warner, Andrew M., 2001. "The curse of natural resources," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(4-6), pages 827-838, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Chloé Duvivier & Emma Cazou & Stéphanie Truchet‐Aznar & Cédric Brunelle & Jean Dubé, 2021. "When, where, and for what industries does broadband foster establishment births?," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 100(6), pages 1377-1401, December.
    2. Timothy W. Kelsey & Mark D. Partridge & Nancy E. White, 2016. "Unconventional Gas and Oil Development in the United States: Economic Experience and Policy Issues," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 38(2), pages 191-214.
    3. Brian E. Whitacre & Dylan L. Johnston & David W. Shideler & Notie H. Lansford, 2020. "The influence of oil and natural gas employment on local retail spending: evidence from Oklahoma panel data," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 64(1), pages 133-157, February.
    4. Jesse Burkhardt & Chris Goemans, 2019. "The short-run effects of marijuana dispensary openings on local crime," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 63(1), pages 163-189, August.
    5. Tracey A. Proverbs & Trevor C. Lantz & Gwich’in Tribal Council Department of Cultural Heritage, 2020. "Cumulative Environmental Impacts in the Gwich’in Cultural Landscape," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-22, June.
    6. Keeler, Zachary T. & Stephens, Heather M., 2020. "Valuing shale gas development in resource-dependent communities," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    7. Diane Charlton & Alexander James & Brock Smith, 2022. "Seasonal agricultural activity and crime," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 104(2), pages 530-549, March.
    8. Boslett, Andrew & Hill, Elaine, 2022. "Mortality during resource booms and busts," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    9. Arratia-Solar, Andrea & Paredes, Dusan, 2023. "Commodity price and fatalities in mining – Evidence from copper regions in Chile," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    10. Carpenter, Craig Wesley & Anderson, David & Dudensing, Rebekka, 2019. "The Texas Drilling Boom and Local Human Capital Investment," Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 51(2), pages 199-218, May.
    11. Doris Kwon & Olav Sorenson, 2023. "The Silicon Valley Syndrome," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 47(2), pages 344-368, March.
    12. Nathaly M. Rivera, 2020. "Is Mining an Environmental Disamenity? Evidence from Resource Extraction Site Openings," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 75(3), pages 485-528, March.
    13. Burkhardt, Jesse & Bayham, Jude & Wilson, Ander & Carter, Ellison & Berman, Jesse D. & O'Dell, Katelyn & Ford, Bonne & Fischer, Emily V. & Pierce, Jeffrey R., 2019. "The effect of pollution on crime: Evidence from data on particulate matter and ozone," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    14. Kuan‐Ming Huang & Xiaoli Etienne, 2021. "Impact of Marcellus and Utica shale exploitation on Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia Regional Economies: A synthetic control analysis," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 100(6), pages 1449-1479, December.
    15. Cunningham, Scott & DeAngelo, Gregory & Smith, Brock, 2020. "Fracking and risky sexual activity," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    16. Fleming, David & Komarek, Timothy & Partridge, Mark & Measham, Thomas, 2015. "The Booming Socioeconomic Impacts of Shale: A Review of Findings and Methods in the Empirical Literature," MPRA Paper 68487, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    17. Gittings, R. Kaj & Roach, Travis, 2020. "Who Benefits from a Resource Boom? Evidence from the Marcellus and Utica Shale Plays," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    18. Almutairi, Najla Tharman, 2022. "Does oil wealth matter to female labour force participation: New evidence from the oil-intensive economy of Saudi Arabia," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    19. Chloé Duvivier & Claire Bussière, 2022. "The contingent nature of broadband as an engine for business startups in rural areas," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(5), pages 1329-1357, November.
    20. Rickman, Dan & Wang, Hongbo, 2020. "What goes up must come down? The recent economic cycles of the four most oil and gas dominated states in the US," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Joseph Marchand & Jeremy Weber, 2018. "Local Labor Markets And Natural Resources: A Synthesis Of The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(2), pages 469-490, April.
    2. Guettabi, Mouhcine & James, Alexander, 2020. "Who benefits from an oil boom? Evidence from a unique Alaskan data set," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    3. Komarek, Timothy M., 2016. "Labor market dynamics and the unconventional natural gas boom: Evidence from the Marcellus region," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 1-17.
    4. Jason P. Brown & Timothy Fitzgerald & Jeremy G. Weber, 2019. "Does Resource Ownership Matter? Oil and Gas Royalties and the Income Effect of Extraction," Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, University of Chicago Press, vol. 6(6), pages 1039-1064.
    5. Rickman, Dan & Wang, Hongbo, 2020. "What goes up must come down? The recent economic cycles of the four most oil and gas dominated states in the US," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    6. Tsvetkova, Alexandra & Partridge, Mark D., 2016. "Economics of modern energy boomtowns: Do oil and gas shocks differ from shocks in the rest of the economy?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 81-95.
    7. Fleming, David & Komarek, Timothy & Partridge, Mark & Measham, Thomas, 2015. "The Booming Socioeconomic Impacts of Shale: A Review of Findings and Methods in the Empirical Literature," MPRA Paper 68487, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Jaimes, Richard & Gerlagh, Reyer, 2020. "Resource-richness and economic growth in contemporary U.S," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    9. Weinstein, Amanda & Partridge, Mark & Tsvetkova, Alexandra, 2017. "Follow the Money: How Does the Income Flow After an Energy Boom," MPRA Paper 77336, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Weinstein, Amanda L. & Partridge, Mark D. & Tsvetkova, Alexandra, 2018. "Follow the money: Aggregate, sectoral and spatial effects of an energy boom on local earnings," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 196-209.
    11. Rickman, Dan S. & Wang, Hongbo, 2018. "What Goes Up Must Come Down? A Case Study of the Recent Oil and Gas Employment Cycle in Louisiana, North Dakota and Oklahoma," MPRA Paper 87252, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Timothy W. Kelsey & Mark D. Partridge & Nancy E. White, 2016. "Unconventional Gas and Oil Development in the United States: Economic Experience and Policy Issues," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 38(2), pages 191-214.
    13. Gourley, Patrick & Madonia, Greg, 2018. "Resource booms and crime: Evidence from oil and gas production in Colorado," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 37-52.
    14. Grant D. Jacobsen, 2019. "Who Wins In An Energy Boom? Evidence From Wage Rates And Housing," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 57(1), pages 9-32, January.
    15. Betz, Michael R. & Partridge, Mark D. & Farren, Michael & Lobao, Linda, 2015. "Coal mining, economic development, and the natural resources curse," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 105-116.
    16. Tsvetkova, Alexandra & Partridge, Mark, 2017. "The shale revolution and entrepreneurship: An assessment of the relationship between energy sector expansion and small business entrepreneurship in US counties," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 423-434.
    17. Jason P. Brown, 2021. "Response of Consumer Debt to Income Shocks: The Case of Energy Booms and Busts," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 53(7), pages 1629-1675, October.
    18. Rajbhandari, Isha & Faggian, Alessandra & Partridge, Mark D., 2022. "Oil and gas boomtowns and occupations: What types of jobs are created?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    19. Grant Mark Nülle & Graham A. Davis, 2018. "Neither Dutch nor disease?—natural resource booms in theory and empirics," Mineral Economics, Springer;Raw Materials Group (RMG);Luleå University of Technology, vol. 31(1), pages 35-59, May.
    20. Watson, Brett & Reimer, Matthew N. & Guettabi, Mouhcine & Haynie, Alan, 2021. "Commercial fisheries & local economies," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • Q33 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Resource Booms (Dutch Disease)
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes
    • K42 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:anresc:v:61:y:2018:i:1:d:10.1007_s00168-018-0861-x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.