After a three-year effort drawing on the medical histories of thousands of people in southwestern Pennsylvania who live near oil and gas infrastructure, University of Pittsburgh researchers found links between the industry’s activities and some forms of childhood cancer, poor birth outcomes, and asthma in children and adults.

Commissioned by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh conducted three studies to examine the relationship between these health conditions and distance from fracked wells in various stages of development. For some of the research, they also looked at proximity to compressor stations, wastewater impoundments and facilities that accept fracking waste.

The reports, released at 6 p.m. Tuesday, follow years of similar studies that used proximity to oil and gas infrastructure as a proxy for exposure to pollution.

Cancer study
Using the Pennsylvania Cancer Registry, the cancer study looked at 507 children, aged 0-19, who were diagnosed between 2010 and 2019 in southwestern Pennsylvania’s shale gas hot spots: Washington, Westmoreland, Fayette, Greene, Beaver and Butler counties, and all of Allegheny County around the City of Pittsburgh, which has a ban on hydraulic fracturing.