The Truth Behind Hydrualic Fracturing

"Another study in 2012 have shown that in areas of Texas where drilling has taken place for years, the high levels of ozone caused by methane have been shown to have a direct correlation to an increase in asthma from 7% to 25% in children."******

Fracking directly produces many air pollutants, as defined by the EPA's Clean Air Act, causing dangerously high levels toxic air pollution near drilling sites.* Just in 2011 alone, the 14 leading fracking companies in the U.S. injected over 10 million gallons of more than 650 products that contained known and possible carcinogens deemed as hazardous air pollutants.** Specifically, some of these products include volatile organic compounds. For example, within confined spaces, methane can displace oxygen, causing asphyxiation.*** A study in the Environmental Health Perspectives journal found that “people living near natural-gas wells were more than twice as likely to report upper-respiratory and skin problems than those farther away”.**** There are four other serious types of health problems: birth defects, blood disorders, nervous system impacts, and even cancer.**** In terms of birth defects, a study of Colorado areas with high concentrations of gas activity found that mothers who lived near many oil and gas wells were 30% more likely to have babies with heart defects than mothers in other regions.**** Some of the volatile organic compounds and hydrogen sulfide can cause neurological problems, including seizures and loss of consciousness.***** Cancer can be caused through repeated exposure to high levels of benzene, formaldehyde, and diesel particulates.*****