Health professionals are calling for a ban on fracking in Pennsylvania after three “bombshell” studies—published despite resistance from fossil fuel interests—linked exposure to the oil and gas extraction process to childhood lymphoma, asthma, and low birth weight.
“I live in Washington County. There is no resident who lives more than 10 miles away from a fracking well or another site of fracking infrastructure,” said Dr. Ned Ketyer, president of Physicians for Social Responsibility Pennsylvania, who first called on state regulators to investigate fracking’s health risks in 2019.
“We are all at risk. And the risk is significant.”
Living near fracking wells has been linked to health risks by a set of three new studies co-published by the Pennsylvania state government and the University of Pittsburgh. Those hazards include an increased rate of lymphoma among children who live within one mile of a gas well compared to those within a five-mile radius, a correlation between low birth weight and a mother’s proximity to producing wells, and a link to hospitalization for asthma for people living within 10 miles of a well.
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