Out d'Coup LIVE | Kristina Marusic from Environmental Health News on "Fractured: The Body Burden of Living Near Fracking" | 3/17/21

I welcome Kristina Marusic to the show to talk about her new devastating, investigative series for Environmental Health News, “Fractured: The Body Burden of Living Near Fracking.” Fractured lays bear their scientific findings from a 9-week pilot study in Southwestern Pennsylvania where families are exposed to harmful chemicals and the failure of local, state, and federal officials to protect communities’ physical, mental, and social health. The series focuses on five families, three in Washington County, PA and two in Westmoreland County, PA. The study finds not only high levels of toxic chemicals in the air and water - but inside the bodies of these families, with children frequently showing the highest levels of toxins. The study also explores how the explosion of fracking in Southwestern PA has also led to significant costs on the mental health of residents and a breakdown in the social well-being of communities. 

Kristina Marusic covers environmental health and justice issues in Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania. She has received recognition or awards from the Society of Environmental Journalists, the Association of Health Care Journalists, the Society of Professional Journalists, the National Institute of Health Care Management, the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania, the Carnegie Science Center, and the Pittsburgh-based Group Against Smog and Pollution (GASP) for her reporting on these topics.

Prior to joining EHN, Kristina covered issues related to environmental and social justice as a freelancer for a wide range of digital media outlets including Slate, Vice, Women's Health, MTV News, The Advocate, CNN, and Bustle. She is also the co-president and co-founder of the Pittsburgh chapter of the Association of LGBTQ Journalists. She is also working on a new book called, The New War on Cancer, about the doctors, researchers, and activists leading a nationwide movement to rethink cancer prevention strategies through the lens of toxic exposures, to be published by Island Press in 2022.

She lives in Pittsburgh, where she spends much of her free time kayaking the city's iconic three rivers, consuming coffee and eating adventurously. Reach her at kmarusic@ehn.org. And, make sure to check out all the awesome reporting over at Environmental Health News, https://www.ehn.org/.

• Read the series:  “Fractured: The Body Burden of Living Near Fracking.”
• Follow Kristina Marusic on Twitter: @KristinaSaurusR
• Follow Environmental Health News: @EnvirHealthNews