Research: much stress among Groningers due to gas extraction issues, including among the elderly

The gas extraction issue still has its effect on people in Groningen. Questionnaire research shows that people who had multiple instances of damage to their homes have increasingly poor health. In addition, interviews with elderly people show a strong impact on their familiar surroundings and social network.

Yet a cautious beginning of recovery seems to have been initiated: once home reinforcement is completed, residents feel somewhat safer again and stress symptoms decrease. This is evident from the research 'Gronings Perspectief - phase 4', conducted by the University of Groningen (RUG) and the Nivel.

Since 2016, the Gronings Perspectief study has been measuring the impact of earthquake damage among the population of the province of Groningen. We use questionnaires to measure how people feel about their safety, how they assess risks, how much trust they have in institutions and how healthy they are. The results show that all these aspects are negatively affected.

Read the two research reports here: