Pittsburghers old enough to remember the first Earth Day in 1970 would agree with the assertion in the April 27 letter “Natural Gas’s Positive Effect on Our Air” that the air looks cleaner now than it did before. However, crediting fracking for any “positive effect” on the region’s air quality is both disingenuous and dishonest.
Fracking produces large quantities of air pollution, most of it volatile organic compounds that increase cancer risk and interfere with the growth and development of children. Fracking increases levels of radon gas, carbon monoxide and fine particles that damage health. Carbon dioxide and methane, the principle greenhouse gases responsible for accelerating climate change, are abundantly produced by fracking.
All of these pollutants are invisible to the human eye. Concerning to me as a pediatrician, a parent and a resident of Washington County is the possible link between fracking and the alarming numbers of rare childhood cancers in heavily fracked counties in southwestern Pennsylvania.
Since that first Earth Day 50 years ago, efforts to clean the air of dirty particles have succeeded to some extent, and we should all be happy about that. Nevertheless, looks are deceiving and “better than it was before” is still not good enough for this region’s residents who continue to suffer because of air pollution. Trading coal for shale gas and saying it’s cleaner is like putting a filter on a cigarette and saying the same. No doctor will tell you to “Go ahead and smoke it.”
EDWARD C. KETYER, M.D.
Peters
The writer is a member of Physicians for Social Responsibility, Pennsylvania.
First Published: May 3, 2020, 4:00 a.m.
