! that!was!created!locally.330!!The!smallest!jurisdiction!of!government!that!best!aligns!with!the! geographic!distribution!of!costs!and!benefits!associated!with!the!regulated!activity!would!be! best!able!to!balance!the!relevant!costs!and!benefits,!and!therefore!would!be!best!able!to!set!its! appropriate!standard!for!environmental!quality.331! ! Oates’!third!case!involves!a!pollutant!that!has!both!local!effects!in!the!jurisdiction!in!question!as! well!as!effects!that!spill!over!the!jurisdictional!boundary!into!neighboring!(or,!perhaps!farther! away)!jurisdictions.332!!Examples!of!this!sort!of!“local!with!spillover”!impact!are!air!or!water! pollution!that!flows!out!of!the!jurisdiction!in!which!it!was!created!and!into!other!jurisdictions.333!! In!these!sorts!of!situations,!local!regulation!is!unlikely!to!take!into!account!the!externalities!that! flow!beyond!the!local!jurisdiction’s!boundaries!(because!the!decision\makers!are!not!directly! accountable!to!the!people!who!bear!those!impacts),!thereby!suggesting!that!regulation!by!a! larger!(perhaps!national)!jurisdiction!would!lead!to!better!outcomes.334! ! Turning!to!shale!gas!development,!most!of!the!benefits!and!costs!of!the!practice!are! experienced!at!the!local,!or!perhaps!regional,!level.!!On!the!benefits!side,!revenues!from! mineral!leases,!jobs!that!are!created,!and!economic!development!that!results!from!the!shale! gas!industry!all!largely!accrue!to!the!local!area!where!extraction!is!occurring.!!On!the!costs!side,! most!of!the!concerns!that!are!raised!by!shale!gas!development!also!largely!impact!the!local! population.!!For!example,!most!issues!concerning!water!supply!impact!local!aquifers!or!surface! water!sources,!and!water!supply!issues!have!traditionally!been!a!state!concern.335!!Conflicts! around!access!to!water!are!typically!between!local!users!and!even!interstate!conflicts!(for! example,!in!the!Southwest)!have!generally!been!handled!by!interstate!compacts.336!!Adverse! impacts!from!construction!of!well!pads!and!access!roads!as!well!as!drilling!and!extraction! activity,!including!noise,!traffic,!lighting,!impacts!on!habitat,!and!visual!impact,!are!all!local! impacts.!!Contamination,!whether!of!land,!surface!water,!or!groundwater,!due!to!spills,! leakages,!or!blowouts!is!generally!localized!in!area!and!falls!under!the!jurisdiction!of!state! governments.337! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 330
!Ibid.,!4.! !Ibid.! 332 !Ibid.,!4–5.! 333 !Ibid.! 334 !Ibid.,!5.!!Oates!notes!that!the!ideal!intervention!in!these!situations!is!not!self\evident!and!that!the! first\best!outcome!is!unlikely!to!be!a!uniform!national!standard!for!environmental!quality.! 335 !Spence,!“Federalism,!Regulatory!Lags,!and!the!Political!Economy!of!Energy!Production,”!33.! 336 !Ibid.! 337 !For!example,!the!jurisdiction!of!the!Clean!Water!Act!over!stormwater!flows!and!discharges!to!surface! waters!is!limited!to!“navigable”!waterways!and!adjacent!wetlands.!!The!focus!of!the!Safe!Drinking!Water! Act!is!on!public!water!systems!with!only!a!“community!information”!approach!offered!for!source!water! protection!(such!as!groundwater!sources).!!On!the!other!hand,!under!RCRA!and!CERCLA,!the!handling,! 331
Chapter!5!–!Regulatory!Federalism!
82!