Babies born near hydraulic fracking sites are more likely to be underweight, according to one of the largest studies ever conducted into how the fossil fuel extraction technique actually affects our health.
The study, published Wednesday in Science Advances, found Pennsylvanian children born within 1 kilometer (0.62 miles) of a fracking site were 25 percent more likely to experience low birth weight. That risk decreases the farther away a child is born. Low birth weight, defined as being born under 5.5 pounds, has previously been linked with an increased risk of childhood mortality and poorer educational outcomes.
While the results could influence local policy surrounding the zoning of fracking sites, they fall short of pinpointing
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From 1 to 3 kilometers [1.8 miles], we find a smaller effect. And then after 3 kilometers, we were unable to detect an impact.”
The team also developed an index that measured health indicators, such as prematurity and congenital abnormalities, for infants in the study. Using these metrics (almost like a stock market), they noticed a small but statistically significant decline in the overall health of babies born closer to fracking sites.
What caused the low birth weights? It’s unclear.
“As the authors point out, that is the major limitation of study,” said Susan Nagel, a reproductive and perinatal research at the University of Missouri, who wasn’t involved in the study. “They are inferring exposure from proximity.”
Hydraulic fracturing pumps a cocktail of water and chemicals into the ground. The pressure fractures shale rock, which releases oil, natural gas and wastewater back to the surface. This wastewater is stored temporarily in storage containers, before typically being deposited back underground in sealed storage wells.
Surface-level spills of fracking fluids and wastewater are common, Nagel said, “and certainly the wastewater seems to be the issue when you’re talking about water impacts.” She cited past instances of spills into surface water, such as in Colorado and West Virginia.
But there is “absolutely air pollution related to fracking” too, said Nagel, whose lab published a systematic review of the connection between oil and natural gas
Hydraulic fracking is not only harmful to people but also toxic for the environment around the site. Extracting gasses deep in the earth's crust is not natural, neither is sucking 5-8 million gallons of water out of lakes. Eight million gallons might not seem like a lot because of how much the earth’s surface is covered in water, but there are over a million wells being fracked around the United States. Even if the fracking site is located in water deficient regions the companies will still pump out a large quantity of water from the local sources. For now, we have enough water for drinking and domestic use, but if the process doesn't stop or slow down we will affect the ecosystem. The composition of some fracking chemicals remains protected and disclosure through various "trade secret" exemptions under state or federal law, scientists analyzing fracked fluid have identified dangerous compounds to humans and the environment. For each frack, 70-300 tons of chemicals may be used, selected from a menu of up to 500 different chemicals. When the workers are down with the fracking mixture it is then stored on site in tanks and get reused until the fluid is be disposed of. When disposing of the flowback fluids, it's injected back into the ground deeper than the wellbore and left. In a recent report, USGS science for a changing world made stated “Wastewater disposal wells typically
The most dangerous consequence of fracking is that hundreds of chemicals are blasted into the Earth’s crust, which creates cracks in the bedrock. Many times, these cracks lead to an aquifer, in which case, all of the water in the aquifer becomes contaminated with these chemicals (Jackson, 2014). Additionally, when the natural gas is being pumped out of the wells, methane is released into the atmosphere. A study conducted by NOAA found that approximately 4% of the methane is being released into the atmosphere. This same study found that methane pollution increases climate changes because it traps heat in the atmosphere 25 times more than carbon dioxide (Hoffman, 2016). Furthermore, fracking waste wells are the primary cause of the increase of earthquakes in the Central U.S. This is because these wells operate for a longer period of time, which means that they inject more “solid ‘cake’” into the Earth than the actual fracking process (USGS, n.d. and StateImpact, 2017). Finally, recent studies have found that people who live near a fracking site are at higher risk to develop respiratory problems, which is due to the increased levels of pollutants. These pollutants are not only affecting the people who live in close proximity to these sites, but to the workers, as well. The most common type of respiratory problem reported was lung
Respiratory problems have been created by fracking pollution. “Impacts of can include asthma attacks, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing and lung disease. Levels of pollutants high enough to cause respiratory problems, particularly for vulnerable populations such as children, have been found both close to fracking sites and in regions with intense oil and gas activity.” We must guard the air we breathe because we are going to the be the ones who will get harmed by it. Exposure to pollutants such as hydrogen sulfide and VOCs can cause neurological problems with ranges from a headache and dizziness to loss of consciousness and seizures. “Multiple studies have measured benzene levels close to fracking sites that are higher than the thresholds set to protect people from these impacts.” These are the problems that a lot of people living near the fracking wells have to face. A number of PAHs and VOCs have been found to interfere with fetal and child development resulting in dangerous harm to the developing brain, nervous system, and heart. “Because even short-term exposures to these pollutants at critical moments of development can result in long-lasting harm, health experts have identified this as a threat to communities living in close proximity to fracking sites.” These impacts can change a child’s entire life with the child having many kinds
Human health and environmental integrity are both at risk from fracking. However, it allows America to be self-sufficient in an energy driven world. In the end, the debate comes down to whether or not the risks outweigh the benefits. In his interview, Josh Fox brings up firsthand accounts of what fracking does to humans, animals, and the environment. Fox tells the story of Debbie May, a land owner who allowed oil companies to frack on her land. May owns serval cats and a horse, all of whom started losing hair and weight since the fracking started (Fox). This is on top of the fact that in several homeowners in various areas found that their water would light on fire after fracking started (Fox). Lastly, in Colorado, benzene is found in
The issue of whether we should continue fracking without research has been widely debated around the world. The issue is important because it has fundamental environmental concerns and economic questions about the process of hydraulic fracturing. “Fracking” is the process of penetrating down into the earth before a high-pressure water mixture is absorbed at the rock to release the gas inside. Water, sand, and chemicals are then inserted into the rock with compression which allows the gas to flow out to the head of the well. Fracking fluid, which can be polluted with heavy metals like arsenic, known human carcinogens, has seeped into local waterways and polluted groundwater. People who live near fracking wells have a heightened danger of developing cancer, asthma, and other serious ailments associated with inhaling or ingesting the toxic chemicals involved in the fracking process. Countries approach fracking and researching much differently from each other. The injection of fluid into shale beds at high pressure to extract petroleum resources has been happening across the United States of America at rapid pace. By 2003, a gigantic public relations campaign was launched to lobby Congress to pass what is
That is more people who live in New York City and in Michigan. Drilling and extraction of natural gas are known to be seriously toxic to humans and animal. A few of the many chemicals are hydrochloric acid, benzene and formaldehyde. Which all have a serious effect for human health and wildlife. Fracking can cause birth defects, cancer, bloody noses, asthma, diarrhea, dizziness, migraines, nerve pain, and skin rashes. Fracking causes earthquakes more and more frequent and the cause is almost certainly fracking and the disposal of wastewater. The earthquakes caused by fracking have not caused much damage yet, but with a call for more drilling. Seismologists are learning more about faults no one knew existed. Fracking has contaminated lots of peoples water some people have complained to be able to light their water on fire because of large amount of methane gas. It has added to the problem of are air
In “Fracking” authors Michael D. Holloway and Oliver Rudd cover the technology and methods of hydraulic fracturing while explaining the consequences it has on our health, agriculture, and the planet. The two set out to expose the truths and fallacies regarding impacts of the controversial topic. Throughout the book excerpt, the authors reiterate their goal of not making false claims; “the goal is to educate and share insight.” The authors work to relieve the public of common hydraulic fracking related misconceptions brought on by the media. While the majority of citizens opposed to fracking report contamination to their water source and air, the authors’ collected studies reveal that these problems are not unique to fracking; they occur whenever
“DEC 's own review identified dozens of potential significant adverse impacts of (fracking)” (Krisberg 18). There are some potential impacts in the fracking process, it will bring a lot of health risks to people. The major constituents of produced water are salt content, oil and grease, various inorganic and organic chemicals, and naturally occurring radioactive material. Salt content in produced water makes the freshwater to salt levels up higher than seawater. Oil and grease makes freshwater is getting oily. Various inorganic and organic chemicals are found naturally in the formation or are chemical additives used during drilling and operation of the well, such as benzene and methane. “Many of the fracking additives are toxic, carcinogenic or mutagenic” (Howarth, Ingraffea 272). This quote tells us that why fracking is contaminating the drinking water. Benzene are one major concern. “The state of Texas reports benzene concentrations in air in the Barnett shale area that sometimes exceed acute toxicity standards” (Howarth, Ingraffea 273). It shows benzene makes drinking water is getting contaminated. “Methane contamination of drinking water reservoirs has been documented in fracking-rich areas of the US. Leading to dramatic videos of seemingly ignitable tap water” (Benusic, 238). This quote tells us that the drinking water is getting contaminated by Methane is proved already. Radioactive material in
Hydraulic Fracturing (fracking) is the process of drilling into the ground and pumping sand, water, and fracking fluid at high pressures in order to extract natural shale gas that was previously unattainable. This process comes with environmental issues: the chemicals from the fracking fluid can contaminate nearby drinking water wells and harm the citizens of that area. Despite the fact that there have been several contaminated drinking water cases reported, there is little being done about this matter. This paper analyzes the available research that asserts why fracking is a dangerous process that should be banned immediately. The intended audience is my peers and instructor, as well as anyone interested in the debacle of fracking-caused water contamination that may come across this piece. As you are reading, I ask that you keep in mind that this is a very perplexing issue that has not been given much of an opportunity for true research and investigation. Therefore, the data discussed has not been officially proven or disproven to be directly related in every way to local fracking. However, the research gathered on the proposed danger of the Hydraulic Fracturing process is solely based on science that has already been proven as well as documented illnesses and symptoms from residents and contractors around or near fracking operation sites.
One of the most common arguments against fracking is that fracking should be banned being that it causes harmful effects on the human body. During the process of fracking, chemicals and methane gas are leaked out of the system and contaminate nearby groundwater. Unfortunately, many people are unaware of the fact that their water has been contaminated so they end up drinking it and causes them to become ill. Due to people drinking this contaminated groundwater, “There have been over 1,000 documented cases of water contamination next to areas of gas drilling as well as cases of sensory, respiratory, and neurological damage due to ingested contaminated water” (“What Goes”). Exposure of fracking chemicals to humans can also causes reproductive issues. Out of the hundreds of chemicals used in fracking, “20 to 30% cause reproductive, mutagenic, or cancerous
According to an eight year long study around fracking sites, one negative effect of fracking is that it can worsen the symptoms of asthma for the people who live around the sites in which the oil and gas method is used. This particular study showed that for the people with asthma who lived around these sites were using treatments as much as 4 times more than that of another person who lived further away from the sites. Sara Rasmussen, the lead author of the article, “Fracking may worsen Asthma for Nearby Residents, Study Says” reported that the air pollution caused by fracking, which had also been proven in another study to have caused heavy air pollution by the oil and gas fracking sites, and the stress caused by the noise produced by the trucks and
Citing the documentary “Gasland”, the article brings to account instances in the past where people who lived close to fracking sites had experienced sickness and foul-smelling water. The documentary had then influenced New York State’s decision to ban fracking. By citing this documentary, the article makes the reader to not fully accept the given conclusion. Without going into great detail, the article mentions a couple of environmental groups questioning of the legitimacy of the study, considering that the study uses data generated by oil and gas companies. This also brings to question the limitations of the data used. The article reads unbiasedly towards both sides of the fracking industry, it recognizes the conclusions of the EPA study but still lets the reader know that there is still a lot that has not been explored in the topic.
Foster, Joanna M. "More Than Flaming Water: New Report Tracks Health Impacts of Fracking on Pennsylvania Residents' Health."Think Progress RSS. N.p., n.d.
Since the development of this modern deep earth fracking technology, many scientists, environmentalists and health advocates have shown a concern for the health effects the method has on the surrounding regions. Current evidence shows that fracking is a high-risk method of drilling, particularly
As the earth progresses and becomes older, life can be hard to sustain when technology becomes more advanced and fossil fuels are being burned rapidly. New methods are being created to support the continuous demand for energy, but some methods are harming the planet rather than creating new opportunities. Hydraulic fracturing has done more harm than good for the Earth by creating unprecedented earthquakes and also contaminating water.