Groups warn of radiation exposure associated with fracking
...Studies show that naturally occurring radioactive materials are present in unusually high quantities in Southern Illinois shale.
During drilling and fracking operations, when elements like radium, uranium, thorium or other radioactive elements are present in the sediment or rocks that contain oil and gas, they will be brought to the surface as drill cuttings or in the drilling fluid, known as drilling mud, circulating up from the drill bit.
Whitney cited a 2014 study published in the Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives that shows that consuming radium in drinking water can cause lymphoma, bone cancer and leukemia. It also states that radium also emits gamma rays which raise cancer risk from external exposures.
A 1997 U.S. Geological Survey of oilfield production sites in White county found that 7 out of 9 of the sites they surveyed were judged to have “high radioactivity.”
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