A recent study conducted by the University of Chicago found that older adults residing close to fracking sites in Pennsylvania had higher rates of hospitalization for cardiovascular diseases compared to individuals living in nearby New York state, where fracking is banned.
Comparing fracking impact between Pennsylvania and nearby New York
Prachi Sanghavi, Assistant Professor of Public Health Sciences at UChicago and senior author of the paper, stated that she became interested in studying the potential health impacts of fracking in the early 2010s, during the peak of the unconventional natural gas development (UNGD) boom. Her team collected Medicare claims data for tens of thousands of patients generated between 2002 and 2015 in northern Pennsylvania, which experienced a fracking boom, and next-door New York state, where UNGD was banned. They found that the development of new fracking sites was associated with increased hospitalization rates for health conditions such as acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, and ischemic heart disease.
The study found that those living near fracking sites could be affected by exposure to air or water pollution that often comes with fracking activity. The researchers found an additional 11.8, 21.6, and 20.4 hospitalizations for acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, and ischemic heart disease, respectively, per 1,000 Medicare users than would be expected if there were no fracking in the area.
The researchers say these results should be a call to action for communities and policymakers affected by fracking development.
“Natural gas is an important energy source in our current infrastructure. One could do a cost/benefit analysis and determine that the benefits of gas extraction outweigh the health effects on local populations. But who is bearing the cost of those decisions? The communities most affected by this should have all of the information and be a part of the conversation.”
Image Credits
In-Article Image Credits
Gas fracking Well Head where fluids are injected into the ground via Wikimedia Commons by Joshua Doubek with usage type - Creative Commons License. August 11, 2011Featured Image Credit
Gas fracking Well Head where fluids are injected into the ground via Wikimedia Commons by Joshua Doubek with usage type - Creative Commons License. August 11, 2011
