Pennsylvania Called an ‘Experimental Fracking Mecca’

Pennsylvania Called an ‘Experimental Fracking Mecca’ by Lab Manager, November 13 2012
“Pennsylvania has opened up its doors to fracking in ways that many other states in the U.S. have not,” said David Dausey, Ph.D., chair of the Mercyhurst University Public Health Department. “We don’t know enough about the environmental and human health effects of fracking and, as a result, Pennsylvania has become the home of experimental fracking.” Dausey discusses his concerns in this month’s episode of The Dausey File: Public Health News Today. … The discovery of Marcellus Shale coupled with Pennsylvania’s loose regulations and friendly relationship with the oil and gas industry have made it so that Pennsylvania has become a mecca for oil and gas industry interested in fracking, Dausey said. He noted that the oil and gas industry along with the government have made it difficult, if not impossible, to conduct comprehensive scientific research on fracking. “Until we have real scientific research about the environmental and human health effects of fracking, we should regard all current fracking practices as experimental,” Dausey said. He posited that people who live close to fracking sites have “every right to be concerned” about the potential health consequences of fracking.

“There is a recent lawsuit in Pennsylvania that claims that Pennsylvania officials didn’t report toxic chemicals found in drinking water near a gas drilling site,” said Dausey. “If true, this raises a real concern about how Pennsylvania is regulating and monitoring the fracking occurring in the state.” Dausey noted that fracking isn’t just a water pollution concern. It can also deliver methane emissions into the air; the exact levels are disputed but research suggests that it may result in acute and chronic health problems for people living close to a well. [Emphasis added]

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