Many chemicals associated with unconventional oil and natural gas (UOG) extraction are known toxicants, leading to health concerns about the effects of UOG. Hydraulic fracturing, i.e., fracking, is a fossil fuel extraction technique that consists of injecting large volumes of fracking fluid (a mixture of water, sand or other proppants, and a variety of chemicals freeing the trapped fossil fuel (e.g., natural gas) for extraction. Unconventional oil and gas operations generate large quantities of wastewaters (flowback fluids and produced water) that contain hydraulic fracturing chemicals, and constituents naturally present in oil and gas deposits. Local contamination of soil, air and water in proximity to unconventional oil and gas operations has been demonstrated.
A growing number of epidemiological studies are showing deleterious health effects in communities living in the vicinity of UOG operations. Health effects associated with proximity to UOG include birth outcomes (e.g., preterm birth, low birth weight, and congenital abnormalities). Indeed, some chemicals associated with UOG, such as acrylamide, benzene, bisphenol A, dibutyl phtalate and strontium, are known reproductive and developmental toxicants in humans, as carcinogenic and mutagenic agents, and endocrine disruptors.
Learn more about fracking and birth outcomes through our webinar and literature, available in the right-hand menu.