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Abstract

This study is a replication of Theodori et al.’s (2009) research on public perception of desalinated produced water from oil and gas field operations. The data used in this paper were collected in twelve Texas counties. Overall, the findings of this investigation paralleled those uncovered in Theodori et al.’s original exploration. Our data reveal that small percentages of respondents are extremely familiar with the process of desalination and extremely confident that desalinated water could meet human drinking water quality and purity standards. Our data also indicate that respondents are more favorably disposed toward the use of desalinated water for purposes where the probability of human or animal ingestion is lessened. Lastly, our data show that individuals with higher levels of familiarity with the process of desalination were more likely than those with lower levels of familiarity to agree that desalinated water from oil and gas field operations could safely be used for each of nine proposed purposes. Possible implications of these findings are advanced.

Publication Date

4-30-2011

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