Health Impact SHALE GAS EXTRACTION WORKSHOP SUMMARY |
Christine Coussens and Rose Marie Martinez, Rapporteurs
Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research, and Medicine
Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice
INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE
OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, D.C.
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
NOTICE: The workshop that is the subject of this workshop summary was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
This activity was supported by contracts between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, The Kresge Foundation, American Chemistry Council, Colgate-Palmolive Company, ExxonMobil Foundation, and Royal Dutch Shell. The views presented in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the activity.
This summary is based on the proceedings of a workshop that was sponsored by the Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research, and Medicine. It is prepared in the form of a workshop summary by and in the name of the rapporteurs as an individually authored document.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-28791-3
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-28791-X
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Suggested citation: IOM (Institute of Medicine). 2014. Health impact assessment of shale gas extraction: Workshop summary. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE
OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
Advising the Nation. Improving Health.
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
Advisers to Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine
The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of Sciences.
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The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. C. D. Mote, Jr., are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council.
PLANNING COMMITTEE FOR THE WORKSHOP ON THE HEALTH IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF NEW ENERGY SOURCES: SHALE GAS EXTRACTION1
ROB DONNELLY, Royal Dutch Shell, The Hague, Netherlands
LYNN R. GOLDMAN, George Washington University, Washington, DC
GEORGE M. GRAY, George Washington University, Washington, DC
ANDREW MAGUIRE, Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC
LINDA A. McCAULEY, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
AUBREY MILLER, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD
CHRISTOPHER J. PORTIER, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA
SCOTT W. TINKER, University of Texas, Austin
__________________
1 Institute of Medicine planning committees are solely responsible for organizing the workshop, identifying topics, and choosing speakers. The responsibility for the published workshop summary rests with the workshop rapporteurs and the institution.
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ROUNDTABLE ON ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCIENCES, RESEARCH, AND MEDICINE1
FRANK LOY (Chair), Washington, DC
LYNN R. GOLDMAN (Vice Chair), George Washington University, Washington, DC
HENRY A. ANDERSON, Wisconsin Division of Public Health, Madison
JOHN M. BALBUS, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD
JAMES K. BARTRAM, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
LINDA S. BIRNBAUM, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC
LUZ CLAUDIO, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY
DENNIS J. DEVLIN, ExxonMobil Corporation, Irving, TX
ROB DONNELLY, Royal Dutch Shell, The Hague, Netherlands
RICHARD A. FENSKE, University of Washington, Seattle
LUIZ A. GALVÃO, Pan American Health Organization, Washington, DC
BERNARD D. GOLDSTEIN, University of Pittsburgh, PA
RICHARD J. JACKSON, University of California, Los Angeles
SUZETTE M. KIMBALL, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA
JAY LEMERY, University of Colorado, Denver
ANDREW MAGUIRE, Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, DC
LINDA A. McCAULEY, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
AL McGARTLAND, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC
DAVID M. MICHAELS, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Washington, DC
CANICE NOLAN, European Commission, Brussels, Belgium
MARTIN A. PHILBERT, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
CHRISTOPHER J. PORTIER, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA
PAUL SANDIFER, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Charleston, SC
__________________
1 Institute of Medicine forums and roundtables do not issue, review, or approve individual documents. The responsibility for the published workshop summary rests with the workshop rapporteurs and the institution.
JOHN D. SPENGLER, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA
LOUIS W. SULLIVAN, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA
ANNE M. SWEENEY, Texas A&M University, College Station
G. DAVID TILMAN, University of Minnesota, St. Paul
PATRICIA VERDUIN, Colgate-Palmolive Company, Piscataway, NJ
NSEDU OBOT WITHERSPOON, Children’s Environmental Health Network, Washington, DC
HAROLD ZENICK, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC
IOM Staff
CHRISTINE COUSSENS, Study Director (until August 2013)
ERIN RUSCH, Associate Program Officer
ANDRÉS GAVIRIA, Research Associate
SUZANNE LANDI, Research Associate
ANDREW LEMERISE, Research Associate
HOPE HARE, Administrative Assistant
ROSE MARIE MARTINEZ, Director, Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice
Reviewers
This workshop summary has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published workshop summary as sound as possible and to ensure that the workshop summary meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this workshop summary:
Jerome Paulson, Mid-Atlantic Center for Children’s Health and the Environment
Susan Santos, Rutgers School of Public Health
Kyra Naumoff Shields, University of Pittsburgh
Leonardo Trasande, New York University
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they did not see the final draft of the workshop summary before its release. The review of this workshop summary was overseen by Melvin Worth. Appointed by the Institute of Medicine, he was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this workshop summary was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this workshop summary rests entirely with the rapporteurs and the institution.
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Contents
Introducing the Workshop Theme
Health Impact Assessment for Shale Gas Extraction
3 GEOGRAPHIC FOOTPRINT OF SHALE GAS EXTRACTION
Fracturing: Accessing Shale and Tight Gas
4 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND COMMUNITY IMPACTS
Community Impacts of Natural Gas Development and Human Health
Economic and Community Impacts of Gas Shale in Pennsylvania
Air Pollution Emissions from Shale Gas Development and Production
Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing on Water Resources
Hydraulic Fracturing, Water Resources, and Human Health
Sustainable Energy for All: Ensuring Health Throughout the Energy Production and Use Life Cycle
8 RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES: RESEARCH COMMUNITY
9 RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES: FEDERAL REPRESENTATIVES
Environmental Health and Hydraulic Fracturing