A 2016
study by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found that hydraulic fracturing, the unconventional oil and gas drilling procedure known as “fracking,” has contaminated drinking water in some cases. At the same time, however, the report found that data gaps and uncertainties made it impossible to fully characterize the severity of the problem.
A new
Yale study will attempt to fill some of the gaps. Over three years, an interdisciplinary team of scientists will examine how fracking and horizontal drilling processes affect drinking water quality and neonatal health in the Appalachian basin, a hotbed region of natural gas production in the U.S.