Premature birth and problem pregnancies near fracking wells – The Ecologist

A new study in the US's 'fracking capital' Pennsylvania has found that pregnant women who live near gas fracking wells are far more likely to give birth prematurely or develop problems during their pregnancies.

Expectant mothers who live near natural gas fracking wells are 40% more likley to give birth prematurely and a 30% increased incidence of 'high-risk' pregnancies.

The finding comes in a new study by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health published in the journal Epidemiology which examines the health of Pennsylvania residents both near to and far from gas fracking operations.

“The growth in the fracking industry has gotten way out ahead of our ability to assess what the environmental and, just as importantly, public health impacts are”, says study leader Brian S. Schwartz, MD, a professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at the Bloomberg School.