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Shale Gas = Methane Health Impacts

Shale Gas = Methane Health Impacts. National Council for Science and Environment Integrating Environment and Health January 2017 Pouné Saberi, MD, MPH Physicians for Social Responsibility. Objectives.

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Shale Gas = Methane Health Impacts

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  1. Shale Gas = Methane Health Impacts National Council for Science and Environment Integrating Environment and Health January 2017 Pouné Saberi, MD, MPH Physicians for Social Responsibility

  2. Objectives 1. Participants will be able to identify how and at what points natural gas processing & transport contribute to disease causation and exacerbation and will be able to identify at least three specific examples 2. Participants will understand and be able to summarize the controversy over methane’s contributions to climate change.

  3. Role of Methane in Climate Disruption • Burning of fossil fuels is driving much of the increase in global temperatures over the past 65 years • Natural gas primary ingredient is methane • Natural gas proposed as an alternative to coal • Leaking methane from the well head to the end user makes effect on the climate much greater

  4. Methane Leakage from Every Phase of Chain • Drilling sites • Processing- compressor Stations • methane emissions 3.2 to 5.8 times higher than estimates based on the U.S. EPA Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program • Transport- Pipelines • Storage • Final distribution • Abandoned wells- three million • 50 percent were leaking after 15 years • 60 percent after about 30 years

  5. Why Is Methane (Shale Gas) Worse for Climate? (Than CO2) • IPCC & EPA: Methane is 86 times more potent at trapping heat than CO2,over a 20-year timeframe • Paris Accord sets goal of 1.5-2.0 °C maximum temperature increase over 20-year time frame • Increasing temperatures perpetuate feedback loop of permafrost melting

  6. Factors That Impact Methane Leakage Lessen Spike/ Increase Compressor blow downs Well site accidents Pipeline explosions Aging infrastructure • Simple technology for valves, seals and connections

  7. Natural Gas vs. Coal • Methane pollution leakage at levels above 3% is enough to negate the climate benefits of natural gas over coal • Satellite data to quantify fugitive emissions • Bakken shale formations leakage rate 10.1% • Eagle Ford shale formations leakage rates 9.1% respectively. • EPA revised upwards its estimates of life cycle methane emissions from the oil and gas industry to 9.3% • Cornell University researchers, calculated that transport, storage, and distribution systems added a 2.5% emission rate at the point of extraction, -> on average 12% leakage

  8. Health Hazards from Air Pollution Health Hazards from Climate Disruption Heat-Related illness and death Drought Wildfires Extreme precipitation flooding Extreme weather patterns Agricultural disruption Infection related diseases • Ground level ozone • Smog • Particulate Matter • > 2.5 micron • Ultrafine • Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons • Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) • BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylene, xylene)

  9. Methane As A Proxy For Other Hazards • Air samples collected around compressor stations • elevated concentrations of volatile organic compounds, particulate matter and gaseous radon • VOC’s (including BTEX) + other hydrocarbons escape with fugitive methane • mixture with NOx from the exhaust of diesel-fueled, mobile and stationary equipment to produce ground-level ozone at extraction sites • Gas field ozone has created pollution issues in rural areas

  10. Compressor Stations & Health Issues • The federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) released two reports on residents living near a natural gas compressor station • Washington County, PA: levels of chemicals in the air at which “some sensitive subpopulations (e.g., asthmatics, elderly) may experience harmful effects • Susquehanna County, PA: fine particulate matter (PM2.5) at levels • long-term exposure can cause an increase in mortality, respiratory problems, hospitalizations, pre-term births, and low birth weight • short-term exposure could harm sensitive populations like those with respiratory problems or heart disease • People living near compressor stations have experienced a range of symptoms ranging from skin rashes to gastrointestinal, respiratory, neurological and psychological problems

  11. Health Effects From Natural Gas Storage Facilities • Massive leak Aliso Canyon storage facility near Los Angeles, California in 2015-2016 • Relocation of thousands of families after area residents complained of headaches, nausea and nosebleeds • The leak also spread particles of metal including barium, manganese, vanadium, aluminum, and iron in local homes, according to the Los Angeles County Health Department

  12. Conclusion= Methane Gas Not a Bridge Fuel • Significant contribution to climate disruption and the health hazards of climate change • Significant contribution to air pollution and the health hazards of air pollutants • Not better than coal and possibly worse • Better alternatives than both exist technologically and economy

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