Media Coverage of Carbon Capture and Storage: An Analysis of Established and Emerging Themes in Dutch National Newspapers

Emma ter Mors (), Esther van Leeuwen, Christine Boomsma and Renate Meier
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Emma ter Mors: Department of Social, Economic and Organisational Psychology, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands
Esther van Leeuwen: Department of Social, Economic and Organisational Psychology, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands
Christine Boomsma: Department of Social, Economic and Organisational Psychology, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands
Renate Meier: Department of Social, Economic and Organisational Psychology, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 4, 1-13

Abstract: Policymakers in several European countries are considering the implementation of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology as part of a strategy to prevent further climate change. Successful CCS implementation requires societal support but planned CCS projects have encountered significant opposition. In this study, we examine the CCS coverage in Dutch national newspapers from 2017 to 2019, a period during which the Dutch CCS landscape underwent several substantial changes, and compare the results to those of earlier media analyses conducted between 1991 and 2011. Most of the 324 articles identified discussed CCS in a neutral (36.4%) or balanced (24.4%) manner, and more critical articles than supportive ones were found (23.1% vs. 16.0%). Consistent with the earlier media analyses, the potential of CCS to reduce carbon dioxide emissions was a major theme in the positive portrayal of CCS, while the argument that CCS implementation is needed for the prompt reduction in emissions gained prominence. High CCS deployment costs and the perception that CCS is an unproven technology have remained major themes in the negative portrayal of CCS. The availability of and preference for alternative solutions was a more prominent theme in the conversation compared to earlier years, whereas the subject of CCS safety was discussed less than before. The study illustrates how media coverage can shed light on the evolving relationships between society and CCS, and on the established and emerging themes in arguments used for and against the technology.

Keywords: carbon capture and storage (CCS); Netherlands; media analysis; societal perception; societal acceptance; argumentation; policy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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