Abstract

Background:

Studies suggest associations between oil and gas development (OGD) and adverse birth outcomes, but few epidemiological studies of oil wells or inactive wells exist, and none in California.

Objective:

Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between residential proximity to OGD and birth outcomes in California.

Methods:

We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 2,918,089 births to mothers living within 10 km of at least one production well between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2015. We estimated exposure during pregnancy to inactive wells count (no inactive wells, 1 well, 2–5 wells, 6+ wells) and production volume from active wells in barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) (no BOE, 1–100 BOE/day, $>100\text{\hspace{0.17em}BOE}/\text{day}$). We used generalized estimating equations to examine associations between overall and trimester-specific OGD exposures and term birth weight (tBW), low birth weight (LBW), preterm birth (PTB), and small for gestational age birth (SGA). We assessed effect modification by urban/rural community type.

Results:

Adjusted models showed exposure to active OGD was associated with adverse birth outcomes in rural areas; effect estimates in urban areas were close to null. In rural areas, increasing production volume was associated with stronger adverse effect estimates. High ($>100\text{\hspace{0.17em}BOE}/\text{day}$) vs. no production throughout pregnancy was associated with increased odds of LBW [odds ratio $\left(\text{OR}\right)=1.40$, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.14, 1.71] and SGA ($\text{OR}=1.22$, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.45), and decreased tBW (mean difference = −36 grams, 95% CI: −54, −17), but not with PTB ($\text{OR}=1.03$, 95% CI: 0.91, 1.18).

Conclusion:

Proximity to higher production OGD in California was associated with adverse birth outcomes among mothers residing in rural areas. Future studies are needed to confirm our findings in other populations and improve exposure assessment measures. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP5842

中文翻译：

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加利福尼亚州居民对油气开发和出生结局的关注度：2006-2015年出生回顾性队列研究。

摘要

背景：

研究表明，油气开发（OGD）与不良出生结局之间存在关联，但是很少有关于油井或非活动井的流行病学研究，而在加利福尼亚州则没有。

目的：

我们的研究旨在调查加利福尼亚州邻近居民的OGD与出生结局之间的关系。

方法：

我们进行了一项回顾性队列研究，研究了2006年1月1日至2015年12月31日期间居住在至少一口生产井10 km内的母亲的2,918,089胎。我们估计孕期暴露于无效井的数量（无无效井，1口井，2口井） –5口井，6 +口井）和活动油井的生产量（以桶油当量（BOE）为单位）（无BOE，每天1-100 BOE， $>100\text{\hspace{0.17em}京东方}/\text{天}$）。我们使用广义估计方程来检验总体和妊娠特定OGD暴露与足月出生体重（tBW），低出生体重（LBW），早产（PTB）和胎龄小（SGA）之间的关联。我们评估了城乡社区类型对效果的影响。

结果：

校正后的模型显示，农村地区积极的OGD暴露与不良的出生结局有关；城市地区的影响估计接近于零。在农村地区，产量增加与不利影响估计值相关。高（$>100\text{\hspace{0.17em}京东方}/\text{天}$）与整个孕期无生产相关的LBW几率增加[赔率 $（\text{要么}）=1.40$，95％置信区间（CI）：1.14、1.71]和SGA（$\text{要么}=1.22$，95％CI：1.02、1.45）和降低的tBW（平均差异= -36克，95％CI：-54，-17），但不包括PTB（$\text{要么}=1.03$，95％CI：0.91、1.18）。

结论：

加利福尼亚州接近高产OGD的现象与农村地区母亲的不良出生结局有关。需要进一步的研究来确认我们在其他人群中的发现并改善暴露评估方法。https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP5842