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Radioactive contamination Wastewater disposal, treatment Water scarcity Loss of agricultural land Loss of wildlife Deforestation Earthquake induction Fugitive methane Global climate game changer Undermines renewable energy policy Public health studies inadequate Regulation inadequate
Health Professionals Call for Regulations/Moratorium on Fracking
Most of the discussion regarding hydraulic fracking, especially high volume horizontal fracking, focuses on energy production and environmental regulation. However, hydraulic fracturing poses numerous significant threats to public health as discussed in more detail below. Toxins released cause water and air pollution with both acute and chronic health effects. Experts agree that these risks have been inadequately studied prior to hydraulic fracking. Health professionals are joining forces with scientists and law scholars to call for moratoriums on further hydraulic fracking until comprehensive, independent, public health and safety testing is done and adequate regulations are in effect to protect individuals and communities. The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) recommends action to address the environmental and health impacts of hydraulic fracturing and supports numerous recommendations to improve regulations, transparency, and accountability including 1) Federal, state, local, and tribal governments conducting Health Impact Assessments (HIAs) and health equity assessments prior to new hydraulic fracturing development projects, 2) Public health professionals from federal, state, and local governments being increasingly involved in policymaking, managing, and monitoring the natural gas industry, and 3) Federal and state governments closing “loopholes” that exempt natural gas activities in environmental regulations. (211) U.S. Government Accountability Office, September 2012: “Oil and
gas development, whether conventional or shale oil and gas, pose inherent environmental and public health risks, but the extent of these risks associated with shale oil and gas development is unknown, in part, because the studies GAO reviewed do not generally take into account the potential long-term, cumulative effects.” (215) CDC: In January 2012, Christopher Portier, director of the National Center for Environmental Health and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, stated that “more research is needed for us to understand public health impacts from natural gas drilling and new gas drilling technologies.” (202) The Medical Society of the State of New York, in 2010, passed a resolution to call for a moratorium on fracking, which was renewed in 2013. “The Medical Society of the State of New York supports a moratorium on natural gas extraction using high volume hydraulic fracturing in New York State until valid information is available to evaluate the process for its potential effects on human health and the environment (Council Action, December 9, 2010).”(185) “Principles of public health emphasize the need for transparency in research and policy, a precautionary approach in the face of uncertainty, baseline and continued monitoring, and adapting management as understanding of risks increases.” Katrina Korfmacher (213) Physicians for Social Responsibility in March 2012, after review of the numerous risks of fracking, including noise, diesel fumes, toxic pollution, fugitive methane, and earthquake induction, adopted the following position on fracking. “PSR supports a precautionary approach that includes a moratorium on the use of hydraulic fracturing until such time as impartial federal agencies, such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, develop and implement enforceable rules that provide adequate protection for human health and the environment from fossil fuel extraction processes that use hydraulic fracturing. “ (175) New York State Department of Health Commissioner Nirav Shah states in a letter to Governor Cuomo, February 2013, “The time to ensure the impacts on public health are considered is before the state permits drilling.” This quote was included in a separate letter signed by over 250 health and environmental professionals, health organizations, and over
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