Since its discovery offshore Ireland in 1996, Corrib gas has become synonymous with controversy and socialecological upheaval. Drawing on original data, this case study of the Corrib gas conflict illuminates social, economic environmental and political impacts of oil companies' activities in northwest Ireland and demonstrates how opposition to the Corrib project was not due to NIMBYism or a case of a small rural community fighting a 'David and Goliath' type battle against one of the world's largest multinational oil companies. Rather the community of resistance focused attention on multi-level issues of power, politics and flawed policy formation which resulted in myriad socio-economic and environmental impacts. This article interprets the Corrib gas conflict as a microcosm of Irish state hydrocarbon management, illuminating fundamental issues of society-environment interactions, Ireland's socio-economic composition, the functioning of the Irish state and its 'structural interdependence' with multinational corporations (Harman, 2009;Slevin, 2016). The article argues that forces driving the dispute are simultaneously practical and ideological, local, national and global, extending beyond fractious dynamics of oil company and community interactions to encompass state institutions and Ireland's place in a globalized world.
Highlights The 1996 discovery of Corrib gas was regarded as 'a milestone in Irish offshore exploration and production' (DMNR, 2001) yet Corrib gas became synonymous with conflict and controversy. Article draws on original data to illuminate social, economic, environmental and political impacts of oil companies' activities in northwest Ireland. The emergence of a community of resistance opposed to the Corrib gas project was not due to NIMBYism or a 'David and Goliath' type battle of a rural community against multinational oil companies; conflict can be interpreted as a microcosm of Irish state hydrocarbon management. Raises fundamental issues of society-environment interactions, the functioning of the Irish state and its 'structural interdependence' with multinational corporations. Concludes that forces driving the Corrib conflict are simultaneously practical and ideological, local, national and global, extending beyond fractious dynamics of oil company and community interactions to encompass state institutions and Ireland's place in a globalized world.