PPROA Pipeline March 2015 | Page 12

12 Oil & Gas Discussions Must be Based on Science  Sensible regulation and responsible production co-exists across Texas and can co-exist everywhere to keep our communities safe and our economy strong.  1,500-foot setback requirements amount to a de facto ban; people who oppose oil and gas development have said so publicly. Research confirms that 600-foot setbacks protect public health.  Communities should base decisions about oil and natural gas activity on sound science, not discredited research. A study that has been cited in College Station recently, about higher risk of cancer within a half mile of a well, has been discredited and decommissioned because the authors used flawed methodology and inflated their findings dramatically.  Properly conducted research shows that natural gas activity doesn't result in air exposures that would pose health concerns.  The former administrator of the EPA herself said she was not aware of any instance when fracking contaminated groundwater.  Be an advocate for sensible r