More than 100 organizations and 800 people asked Gov. Tom Wolf to order an investigation into the possible health effects of natural gas production.
He stopped short of giving them what they wanted but did what his administration described as the most he could do: He directed the health department to seek out others who could perform the study.
Mr. Wolf and health Secretary Rachel Levine should be given time to beat the bushes, but those advocating for the study should keep the pressure on. Mr. Wolf and Dr. Levine are responsible for public health in Pennsylvania, and they cannot punt, pass the buck or leave concerned Pennsylvanians hanging.
The people who live in fracking country feel a sense of urgency, and Pennsylvania’s top officials must feel it, too.
From the time about 20 years ago when landmen began appearing in rural areas to lock down drilling rights, natural gas production has been a controversial industry in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Long-present concerns about the industry’s possible impact on public health have increased in the wake of the Post-Gazette’s ongoing series, Human Toll, which has documented 67 cases of child cancer in Fayette, Greene, Washington and Westmoreland counties. Many of the cases are rare, and parents deserve to know whether fracking is involved.
State health officials already have reviewed 15 cases of one rare cancer, Ewing sarcoma, and concluded that they occurred by chance.
They also collaborated with colleagues in Colorado, another state known for natural gas production, to review other studies conducted by academia, business and government over the years. Their goal was to see what the totality of findings suggested, and they determined that the research conducted to date was inconclusive.
While Mr. Wolf and Dr. Levine agree with the call for more research, they say the state does not have the capacity or funding to carry out the kind of study needed. So they have decided to look for others with the means to do this work — the state’s research universities, for example — and to assist however they can. That could mean lobbying the Legislature for funding or using the state’s clout to leverage federal money. Or it could mean providing technical help of some kind.
Emily Wurth, an activist who signed the letter to Mr. Wolf, said the child cancers “warrant an immediate investigation” and allocation of state money to perform the research. But if the state isn’t up to the job, the best course of action is to find someone who is.
The letter to Mr. Wolf asked that the state issue no new drilling permits until the study on fracking and health is complete. That’s a step Mr. Wolf hasn’t taken. In that case, he and Dr. Levine must work quickly to identify researchers to undertake the study.
Perhaps the research will rule out fracking but identify another cause of the child cancers. Insights and answers are needed now. Mr. Wolf and Dr. Levine have bought themselves some time, but not much.
First Published: June 26, 2019, 4:00 a.m.