Pitt to present results of environmental health studies
The University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health scientists will present the results of studies exploring health impacts of human exposure to environmental risk factors, including unconventional natural gas development activities, in an eight-county region in Southwestern Pennsylvania.
The in-person meeting will be held Aug. 15 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Penn Western University California campus in the Performance Center on the second floor of the Natali Student Center.
Attendees can park in lots 15, 17, or 19 at no cost.
A live online broadcast can be viewed at https://pwmediasite.passhe.edu/Mediasite/Play/)c67ad2975464812b24b6c07e819f3371d when the meeting starts. Those attending online must submit questions in advance to paenv@pitt.edu.
In 2019, the Pennsylvania Department of Health contracted with Pitt Public Health to conduct three observational epidemiological studies focusing on asthma, birth outcomes and childhood cancers.
Families pressed the Wolf administration for an investigation after dozens of children and young adults were diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma and other forms of cancer in Washington, Greene, Fayette, and Westmoreland counties.
The studies focused on the potential health impacts of human exposure to environmental risk factors, such as unconventional natural gas development activities, among others.
The first study focused on finding out if historical exposure to various environmental risk factors may be linked to childhood cancers in Southwestern Pennsylvania.
The second and third studies looked to determine if exposure to environmental risk factors is related to more severe cases of asthma or to increased occurrence of adverse birth outcomes in Southwestern Pennsylvania.
The Center for Coalfield Justice and MAD-FACTS will host an in-person debrief and healing space after the health study meeting at the California United Methodist Church at 227 Third Street in California.