VANCOUVER — Fracking in Carroll County, the heart of Ohio’s natural gas boom, hasn’t contaminated groundwater, new research shows. The study is the first in the country to evaluate drinking water quality before and after the local onset of hydraulic fracturing, better known as fracking.

Some residential water wells did contain high levels of methane, which is the core component of natural gas. But researchers reported October 19 at the Geological Society of America’s annual meeting that the contamination came from natural biological sources such as soil bacteria, not leaky gas wells. Previous studies in Pennsylvania and New York linked fracking wells with methane pollution in groundwater (SN Online: 6/25/13).

More: No Water Contamination Found in Ohio’s Fracking Epicenter

From the comments-

Thomas Sumner Calvin Haynes • 3 days ago
Here’s a link to the project page: artsci.uc.edu…. The research is conducted by scientists at the University of Cincinnati.

From the Frequently Asked Question on that site:

“Who funds your project? Are you funded by a fracking company?

“We are not funded in any way by energy or fracking companies or by anti-fracking groups. Our funding comes from two non-profit, philanthropic organizations, the Deer Creek Foundation and the Alice Weston Foundation. We also receive private donations from individuals.”