Field Survey of Health Perception and Complaints of Pennsylvania Residents in the Marcellus Shale Region

Pouné Saberi, Kathleen Joy Propert, Martha Powers, Edward Emmett and Judith Green-McKenzie
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Pouné Saberi: Department of Emergency Medicine, Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology, University of Pennsylvania Health Systems, One Convention Ave, 4 Penn Tower, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
Kathleen Joy Propert: Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
Martha Powers: Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
Edward Emmett: Department of Emergency Medicine, Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
Judith Green-McKenzie: Department of Emergency Medicine, Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology, University of Pennsylvania Health Systems, One Convention Ave, 4 Penn Tower, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA

IJERPH, 2014, vol. 11, issue 6, 1-11

Abstract: Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale region residents have reported medical symptoms they believe are related to nearby Unconventional Natural Gas Development (UNGD). Associations between medical symptoms and UNGD have been minimally explored. The objective of this descriptive study is to explore whether shale region Pennsylvania residents perceive UNGD as a health concern and whether they attribute health symptoms to UNGD exposures. A questionnaire was administered to adult volunteers with medical complaints in a primary-care medical office in a county where UNGD was present. Participants were asked whether they were concerned about health effects from UNGD, and whether they attributed current symptoms to UNGD or to some other environmental exposure. There were 72 respondents; 22% perceived UNGD as a health concern and 13% attributed medical symptoms to UNGD exposures. Overall, 42% attributed one or more of their medical symptoms to environmental causes, of which UNGD was the most frequent. A medical record review conducted on six participants who attributed their medical symptoms to UNGD revealed that only one of these records documented both the symptoms in question and the attribution to UNGD. The results of this pilot study suggest that there is substantial concern about adverse health effects of UNGD among Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale residents, and that these concerns may not be adequately represented in medical records. Further efforts to determine the relationship between UNGD and health are recommended in order to address community concerns.

Keywords: unconventional natural gas development; hydraulic fracturing; Marcellus Shale; Pennsylvania; health perceptions; patient concerns; symptoms; medical records (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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