Air In the Vicinity of Texas Gas Facilities Contains Cancer Causing Toxin
Back in 2002, drilling for natural gas began to take off in the Barnett Shale around 2002, when there were nearly 2,000 wells. Since then, that number has grown to more than 12,000 wells. During a seven year period, no air quality tests have been done. Currently, for the first time, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is conducting a Barnett Shale air quality study.
News 8 learned that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) found something potentially hazardous in the air near some natural gas facilities during testing conducted around the Barnett Shale. Benzene, a cancer-causing, dangerous toxin, is in the air.
“Long-term exposures to a high enough level of benzene can lead to cancers, leukemia specifically,” said Dr. Michael Honeycutt, who heads TCEQ’s toxicology department and is involved in overseeing the testing. “Short term, we are seeing some high levels that probably will exceed the short term ESL [effects screening level],” he said.
That means they may exceed the commission’s benchmark for concern. Because of the find, long term testing will be done. TCEQ is still working to determine who runs the facilities associated with the Benzene results and where they’re located. But, the commission isn’t waiting to act. They plan to hand over the results to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Dr. Al Armendariz, a Southern Methodist University researcher and environmental engineer, has researched emissions in the Barnett Shale. He is not surprised by TCEQ’s findings.
“What I don’t think anybody really knows yet is are the levels of these compounds in Fort Worth high enough and have they been in the air long enough to be a potential cancer risk?” he said.
Tarrant County goat farmer Deborah Rogers was so upset about the lack of testing around natural gas facilities in the Barnett Shale that she began to raise money for a private air quality study to be conducted by Armendariz.
In August, the agency began its first Barnett Shale air quality study, testing air samples near natural gas operations in Tarrant, Wise, Denton, Parker and Johnson counties.
TCEQ is expected to issue a report on its findings by the end of the year.
