Modeling Atmospheric Emissions and Calculating Mortality Rates Associated with High Volume Hydraulic Fracturing Transportation

Emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels are a growing pollution concern throughout the global community, as they have been linked to numerous health issues. The freight transportation sector is a large source of these emissions and is expected to continue growing as globalization persists. Within the US, the expanding development of the natural gas industry is helping to support many industries and leading to increased transportation. The process of High Volume Hydraulic Fracturing (HVHF) is one of the newer advanced extraction techniques that is increasing natural gas and oil reserves dramatically within the US, however the technique is very resource intensive. HVHF requires large volumes of water and sand per well, which is primarily transported by trucks in rural areas. Trucks are also used to transport waste away from HVHF well sites. This study focused on the emissions generated from the transportation of HVHF materials to remote well sites, dispersion, and subsequent health impacts. The Geospatial Intermodal Freight Transport (GIFT) model was used in this analysis within ArcGIS to identify roadways with high volume traffic and emissions. High traffic road segments were used as emissions sources to determine the atmospheric dispersion of particulate matter using AERMOD, an EPA model that calculates geographic dispersion and concentrations of pollutants. Output from AERMOD was overlaid with census data to determine which communities may be impacted by increased emissions from HVHF transport. The anticipated number of mortalities within the impacted communities was calculated, and mortality rates from these additional emissions were computed to be 1 in 10 million people for a simulated truck fleet meeting stricter 2007 emission standards, representing a best case scenario. Mortality rates due to increased truck emissions from average, in-use vehicles, which represent a mixed age truck fleet, are expected to be higher (1 death per 341,000 people annually)