Associations between Residential Proximity to Oil and Gas Drilling and Term Birth Weight and Small-for-Gestational-Age Infants in Texas: A Difference-in-Differences Analysis

Oil and natural gas extraction may produce environmental pollution at levels that affect reproductive health of nearby populations. Available studies have primarily focused on unconventional gas drilling and have not accounted for local population changes that can coincide with drilling activity. Ou...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental health perspectives 2021-07, Vol.129 (7), p.77002
Main Authors: Willis, Mary D, Hill, Elaine L, Boslett, Andrew, Kile, Molly L, Carozza, Susan E, Hystad, Perry
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Air pollution
Birth Weight
Births
Confidence intervals
Drilling
Energy research
Environmental Exposure - adverse effects
Female
Fetus
Gas extraction
Gas industry
Gestational age
Growth
Health aspects
Humans
Infant
Infant, Newborn
Infant, Small for Gestational Age
Infants
Local population
Missing data
Natural gas
Neighborhoods
Oil
Oil and Gas Fields
Pollutants
Population
Population changes
Population studies
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Outcome - epidemiology
Proximity
Quasi-experimental methods
Reproductive health
Retrospective Studies
Small for gestational age
Statistical analysis
Texas - epidemiology
VOCs
Volatile organic compounds
Water pollution
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Summary:Oil and natural gas extraction may produce environmental pollution at levels that affect reproductive health of nearby populations. Available studies have primarily focused on unconventional gas drilling and have not accounted for local population changes that can coincide with drilling activity. Our study sought to examine associations between residential proximity to oil and gas drilling and adverse term birth outcomes using a difference-in-differences study design. We created a retrospective population-based term birth cohort in Texas between 1996 and 2009 composed of mother-infant dyads ( ) living from an oil or gas site. We implemented a difference-in-differences approach to estimate associations between drilling activities and infant health: term birth weight and term small for gestational age (SGA). Using linear and logistic regression, we modeled interactions between births before (unexposed) or during (exposed) drilling activity and residential proximity near (0-1, 1-2, or ) or far ( ) from an active or future drilling site, adjusting for individual- and neighborhood-level characteristics. The adjusted mean difference in term birth weight for mothers living 0-1 vs. from a current or future drilling site was [95% confidence interval (CI): , ] for births during active vs. future drilling. The corresponding adjusted odds ratio for SGA was 1.02 (95% CI: 0.98, 1.06). Negative associations with term birth weight were observed for the 1-2 and near groups, and no consistent differences were identified by type of drilling activity. Larger, though imprecise, adverse associations were found for infants born to Hispanic women, women with the lowest educational attainment, and women living in cities. Residing near oil and gas drilling sites during pregnancy was associated with a small reduction in term birth weight but not SGA, with some evidence of environmental injustices. Additional work is needed to investigate specific drilling-related exposures that might explain these associations. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP7678.
ISSN:0091-6765
1552-9924
DOI:10.1289/EHP7678