Guest opinion, Boulder Daily Camera
July 4, 2020 at 4:00 p.m.
FracTracker Map for Colorado and the U.S.
FracTracker Alliance studies, maps, and communicates the risks of oil and gas development to protect our planet and support the renewable energy transformation.
Read moreThe sixth edition of the fracking “Compendium,” which summarizes and links to an almost encyclopedic compilation of reports, peer-reviewed articles and investigative reporting on fracking’s dangerous impacts on health, has been released.
PSR is proud to partner with Concerned Health Professionals of New York in preparing and rolling out this volume, which highlights factual evidence that fracking for oil and gas hastens climate change and harms human health.
The Compendium—its full name is “Compendium of Scientific, Medical, and Media Findings Demonstrating Risks and Harms of Fracking (Unconventional Gas and Oil Extraction)”—is an invaluable tool for anyone seeking to understand and convey fracking’s health threats. It provides brief summaries of some 1,500 reports; electronic links facilitate access to source material. Content is divided into sections that include public health, water contamination, air pollution, inherent engineering problems, abandoned wells, pipelines, LNG export, and more.
The Compendium also addresses some of fracking’s widening circles of impact, with sections ranging from flood risks, to earthquakes, to threats to agriculture.
It also examines methane (fracked gas) leaks into the atmosphere, greatly accelerating climate change.
Read moreOne of the most important methods to determine risk of pollution exposure is the ability to measure that exposure. Beginning in early April of 2017, continuous monitoring of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) has been done at the Boulder Reservoir by Dr. Detlev Helmig an INSTAAR (The Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research) scientist at CU. Dr. Helmig's research has showed that the Oil and Gas Industry has under reported the pollution of VOCs emitted from their fracking sites along the front range.
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Click here to read The Health Impacts Of Fracking
Who we are:
Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) is a scientific and educational organization representing medical and health professionals and concerned citizens, with nearly 40,000 members and supporters. PSR has been working for more than 50 years to create a healthy, just and peaceful world for present and future generations.
PSR Colorado works to elevate the voice of health professionals in regard to protecting the public from the health impacts of hydraulic fracturing, the climate crisis, and exposures to radionuclides and other toxic substances on current and future generations. PSR Colorado advocates for solutions to reliance on fossil fuels and nuclear energy.
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