PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Relating Geoscience to the Public
J. Foster Sawyer, CPG-10000
foster.sawyer@
sdsmt.edu
Recently I had the pleasure of repre- senting AIPG at the June 2015 Council Meeting of the European Federation of Geologists (EFG) in Newcastle, England, which was held in conjunction with a workshop titled “Mining in a Crowded Country.” Later in the summer I had the pleasure of organizing and teaching a new petroleum-related field course based in the Powder River, Williston, and Denver-Julesburg basins. During both of these experiences geologic infor- mation, exploration techniques, and approaches to resource extraction all were discussed. However, significant time also was devoted to environmental and societal considerations during the production and transportation of the resources. After completing these two separate experiences, I was struck by the similar challenges faced by geoscien- tists around the world. Geoscientists not only work to provide natural resources that support modern civilization, but they also are called upon to protect water resources, air quality, ecosystems, and other natural resources that can be vulnerable to impacts from mining, hydrocarbon production, industrial and agricultural operations, and many other anthropogenic activities. I was more deeply impressed than ever with the role of geoscientists in relating critical information to the public with respect to issues such as mining, hydraulic fractur- ing, earthquakes, flooding, landslides, aquifer recharge areas, volcanic erup- tions, and the list continues.
One of the many interesting top- ics of discussion at the EFG meeting in Newcastle was a description of the permitting process and societal issues involved with a proposed subsurface mine in a large potash deposit located within a national park in England. The entire operation, from mining through transportation of the ore to a facility outside of the park, is designed to be
completely underground to minimize impacts to the national park. The pro- posed mine would obviously bring sig- nificant economic benefits and jobs to the region, and progress has been made in the permitting process. I could not help but wonder how a proposed mine site such as this in a national park in the United States would fare, and it will be interesting to watch the progression of events during the permitting process for that project.
Here in the U.S. we also have many societal issues with mining, hydrocar- bon production/transportation, water resources, and other activities. As this goes to press news is breaking about a mining related spill in Colorado. Issues involving the Marcellus Formation and other hydrocarbon producing formations in the northeastern United States have garnered much press coverage during recent years. The course I taught this summer took me to an active oilfield in Colorado where wells in the Niobrara Formation are hydraulically fractured and where there has been ongoing politi- cal tension regarding the oil and gas industry. Several Colorado municipali- ties have voted to suspend or ban hydrau- lic fracturing, and there are current efforts to approve a statewide ballot initiative that if passed would give local governments in Colorado the ability to ban hydraulic fracturing in their juris- dictions.
Given these and many other pressing geosocietal issues worldwide, it is clear that relating, explaining, and interpret- ing geoscientific issues to the public is more important than ever, and that geoscientists play a fundamental role in the perception and understanding of critical industrial fields (e.g., water, mining, hydrocarbons) that sustain the very fabric of society on a global scale. However, many people do not make the connection between geoscientists
and the products and materials that they use every day such as cell phones, computers, vehicles, fuel, heat and air conditioning in their homes and offices, the buildings in which they live and work, the roads on which they travel, clean water to drink, and innumerable other products that are fundamental to our lives. Sometimes emotion and mis- information carry the day in the heat of public debate, and information available from a myriad of online sources can be conflicting, inflammatory, misleading, or inaccurate.
Municipalities, public and regulatory boards of all types, state and federal congressional representatives, and the general public all need clear, accurate, unbiased information in order to make appropriate decisions regarding the use and conservation of precious natural resources. Geoscience education and public relations have come a long way in recent years, and our message is getting stronger and clearer, but there is more work to be done. Efforts by petroleum and mining companies to convey their concern for environmental protection and stewardship, efforts by organiza- tions such as the American Geoscience Institute (and many others) to educate lawmakers and the general public about the importance of geoscience issues, and efforts by individuals including the members of AIPG and dozens of other geoscience organizations are having a positive impact. I applaud these efforts and encourage all of our members to con- tribute their knowledge and expertise in these endeavors which are critical to society as well as to the field and profes- sion of geoscience.
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