Episode Details

Across the nation, natural gas production has been ramping up. In many communities, this has meant new pipelines, new promises, and new protests. How do we balance environmental concerns and the public good? Environmental engineer Andres Clarens (University of Virginia)explains the science. Jaime Allison (Christopher Newport University) argues that we can better understand pipelines by looking back to the early days of railroads. Economist Sarah Stafford (College of William and Mary) argues that pipelines require people to weigh environmental costs and economic benefits, and the results aren’t always what you’d expect. Sociologist Travis Williams (Virginia Commonwealth University) takes us to Union Hill, a historically African American community in Buckingham County, Virginia, where a natural gas compressor station is being planned.