Nov 7, 2015 1 min read

While there is a range of opinions among Pennsylvanians about how to best address the risks posed by fracking, there should be consensus when it comes to prioritizing the health and safety of Pennsylvania’s children.

PennEnvironment’s new report, “Dangerous and Close,” shows that there are 166 schools and 165 child-care providers within a mile of a permitted fracking well site in Pennsylvania. What’s worse, there have been over 400 violations of environmental and public health regulations committed by frackers within one mile of a Pennsylvania school or child-care provider.

No parent would put a child directly in harm’s way. So why do our elected officials allow Pennsylvania’s children, some of our most vulnerable residents, to live in the shadow of an industrial practice that has been repeatedly shown to compromise the public health of adjacent communities?

This isn’t about a difference in opinion over policy, science, or the economy. It’s simple: we need to put the health and safety of Pennsylvanians – especially children – first.

Allie DiTucci

Philadelphia

DiTucci is the fracking campaign organizer for PennEnvironment.