In a nutshell:Until now, no independent researchers had systematically measured toxic air contaminants from any of the more than 3 million abandoned oil and gas wells across the nation, writes Gross. Most previous health studies have focused on communities in proximity to active oil and gas wells, said Casey, leaving huge gaps in knowledge of how abandoned wells impact public health. Big picture:Many homes and buildings in oil and gas-producing states like Pennsylvania, Texas and California are built over abandoned wells -- often without the knowledge of owners or builders. The scale of the problem prompted the Biden administration last year to establish a $4.7 billion program to start cleaning up abandoned wells nationwide. EHN''s coverage of the oil, gas and petrochemical industries is ongoing; you can find more original journalism from our newsroom here.

Source: Standard Digital June 06, 2023 16:14 UTC