Working Paper: NBER ID: w19796
Authors: Lucija Muehlenbachs; Elisheba Spiller; Christopher Timmins
Abstract: Using data from Pennsylvania and New York and an array of empirical techniques to control for confounding factors, we recover hedonic estimates of property value impacts from shale gas development that vary with geographic scale, water source, well productivity, and visibility. Results indicate large negative impacts on nearby groundwater-dependent homes, while piped-water-dependent homes exhibit smaller positive impacts, suggesting benefits from lease payments. At a broader geographic scale, we find that new wellbores increase property values, but these effects diminish over time. Undrilled permits cause property values to decrease. Results have implications for the debate over regulation of shale gas development.
Keywords: shale gas; housing market; property values; groundwater contamination; hedonic analysis
JEL Codes: Q32; Q33; Q50; Q53
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Well proximity (Y60) | Property values for groundwater-dependent homes (Q15) |
| Well proximity (Y60) | Property values for piped water service area homes (L95) |
| New wellbores (L71) | Property values (R33) |
| Undrilled permits (L71) | Property values (R33) |
| Groundwater contamination risk (Q25) | Property values for groundwater-dependent homes (Q15) |