ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the social and environmental harms that are driven by humanity’s reliance on fossil fuels. In particular, it examines the consequences of ‘the process of extreme energy’ and its use of one of the most precious resources—water. This chapter highlights the causal drivers and the environmental, political and social connections between the global capitalist economy, the limits to a growth economy, resource depletion, corporate ‘externalities’, political corruption, community collective trauma and the criminalisation of protest. It begins with a summary of the limits to growth, before turning to an explanation of the process of ‘extreme energy’ and the role of so-called ‘unconventional energy’ development, including its repercussions for societal use of key resources, such as water, which is vital for life as we know it.
