Browsing by Author "Liezl, Groenewald"

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    The moral justifiability of hydraulic fracturing assessed against the Principle of Double Effect
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2022-11) Liezl, Groenewald; Rossouw, Gedeon Josua; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Philosophy.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study investigates whether hydraulic fracturing, commonly referred to as fracking, could be morally justified assessed against the Principle of Double Effect. This Principle emanates from the Just War Tradition and holds that an action that aims to produce a good effect, but produces harmful side-effects, is morally acceptable if the act is good in itself, or morally neutral, the intention of the actor is good, and the side-effects are not a means to the goal, the good effect is morally permissible if it is directly produced by the action and not by the harmful side-effects, and the good effect is sufficiently good to compensate for allowing the harmful side-effects. Apart from being applied in warfare to jus in bellum (justice in war) decisions, the Principle of Double Effect has also been applied in the field of bioethics and in business decision-making. Based on the analogies and disanalogies between war and business, a revised Principle of Double Effect for application in transnational business decisions has also been developed, but its transferability remains problematic. In this study the classical formulation of the Principle from jus in bellum considerations is thus applied to the moral discourse about fracking in South Africa. The discourse about hydraulic fracturing in South Africa generated lively debates among activists, government officials, corporations, and communities. These debates have been informed by various motives ranging from self-interest, diverse ideological paradigms, competing monetary interests, and concern for communities and the environment. Although some opponents and most proponents relied on empirical evidence to support their arguments, none applied a moral decision-making framework to arrive at their opinions regarding fracking. The study identifies the main themes in the discourse about fracking in specifically the Karoo Basin – an arid semi-desert area in South Africa. Seven main themes are explored based on the arguments posited by opponents and proponents of fracking. This is followed by an evaluation of the discourse against the four conditions of the Principle of Double Effect to determine if fracking could be morally justifiable given its foreseeable harmful side-effects. Corporations in the oil and gas industry should take heed of the findings when developing their corporate social responsibility strategies, as it was found that fracking cannot not be morally justified assessed against the four conditions of the Principle of Double Effect.