Living near fracking sites raises risk of premature death for elderly, US study finds

Findings are result of first major study into link between premature death in older people and unconventional drilling

Elderly people living near or downwind from unconventional oil and gas wells such as fracking sites are more likely to die prematurely, according to a major new US study.

Extracting oil and gas through newer or unconventional methods like fracking has expanded rapidly across America over the past two decades with at least 17.6 million people now living within one kilometer of an active well.