Health research needs identified by communities with shale gas resources

Across the country, communities have expressed concerns about the potential impact of hydraulic fracturing (HF) operations on human and environmental health. Community Outreach and Engagement Cores (COECs) in three Environmental Health Sciences Core Centers in New York, North Carolina, and Ohio are collaborating to better understand these concerns. With support from the National Institute of Environmental health Sciences, the COECs assessed community concerns about potential health impacts, their sources of information and areas where communities perceived additional research needs.

The COECs conducted 43 key informant interviews with health professionals, local government officials, environmental and community groups, landowners and educators to obtain diverse perspectives on health concerns and information needs. The interview process was integrated with the collection of additional data (e.g.,reports, articles, etc.) to provide geographic, political, and economic context.

This presentation will describe the information and research needs outlined by interviewees. It will also identify barriers that communities perceive to environmental health research related to HF operations and community recommendations for framing and conducting such research.