Global increase in air pollutant ethane ties to U.S. oil field

Once in the atmosphere, ethane reacts with sunlight to form ozone, which can cause asthma attacks and other respiratory problems, especially in children and the elderly.

The increase, which has continued over the past five years, was noted at the same time new horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing techniques were fueling a boom of oil and gas production from previously inaccessible shale rock formations in the United States.

Ethane gets into the air through leaks from drilling rigs, gas storage facilities and pipelines, as well as from intentional venting and gas burn-offs from extraction operations.