Gas Patch Roulette: Association of symptoms and distance from facilities
When the most prevalent symptoms reported by survey participants were broken out by age and distance from facility, some differences were notable. In most age groups, symptoms are more prevalent in those living closer to facilities than those living further away.
As seen in Figure 1 in the report (and the table below), for most symptoms and in most age groups a higher percentage of the subset living within 1500 feet of an oil and gas facility had symptoms than did the entire age group. For example, 69 % of survey respondents between the ages of 1.5 and 16 who lived within 1500 feet of a gas facility reported throat irriation. Only 57 % of all 1.5-to-16-year-olds reported throat irritation. In sum, while this data analysis does not definitively prove that living closer to an oil and gas facility causes health problems, the data suggest a relationship between distance from facility and occurrence of symptoms.
For more information:
- Gas Patch Roulette: Summary Report
- Gas Patch Roulette: Full Report
- All available information associated with the report, including support documentation not in the full report.
- ShaleTest: www.shaletest.org
Tagged with: toxics, regulation, public health, pennsylvania, health and toxics, gas patch roulette, fracking
Follow Earthworks