Drilling for natural gas contained inside of a sedimentary rock called shale has taken off in recent years in some states. But a team of environmental scientists at Duke University recently released a report to illustrate how that process can contaminate groundwater supplies with methane. Their research is calling more public attention to the shale gas drilling process, known as hydraulic fracturing or "fracking."
Rob Jackson, a professor with Duke's Department of Biology who was a part of the research team that examined the effects of natural gas drilling on well water, joins host Frank Stasio to talk about the fracking boom and the potential health hazards.
