RAPID: Geoscience education for communities impacted by gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale

古生物学研究所，康奈尔大学地球和大气科学系和康奈尔大学合作推广之间的伙伴关系正在开发一个集中，全面和客观的科学信息教育来源，有关马塞勒斯页岩水力压裂的潜在环境后果，这是整个阿巴拉契亚盆地作为天然气资源正在开发中。 这一RAPID奖响应了受影响社区对可靠和中立的科学信息的需求急剧增加，并使纽约州中南部的外联工作得到显著加强，预计钻探将于2010年春末开始。 公众对这一问题的兴趣提供了一个机会，以提高公众的地球系统科学素养，并开发教育资源和实践，帮助公众更好地了解相对风险，以及如何在不确定的情况下做出基于证据的决策。 项目活动最终将扩大到马塞勒斯钻井的其他地区，特别是在PA和WV，补充外联工作重点是土地使用问题和劳动力需求正在进行中。 预计将通过社区论坛的直接外联和通过推广人员网络和网站散发印刷材料，向数万人提供宣传。

A partnership between the Paleontological Research Institution, the Cornell Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, and Cornell Cooperative Extension is developing a centralized, comprehensive, and objective educational source of scientific information regarding the potential environmental consequences of hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale, which is under development throughout the Appalachian Basin as a natural gas resource. This RAPID award responds to a dramatic increase in the demand for reliable and neutral scientific information within the affected communities and enables significantly enhanced outreach efforts in south-central NY State, where drilling is expected to commence by late spring 2010. Public interest in this issue is providing an opportunity to raise public Earth System Science Literacy and to develop educational resources and practices that help the public better understand relative risk and how to make evidence-based decisions under uncertainty. Project activities will eventually expand to additional areas of Marcellus drilling, especially in PA and WV, where complementary outreach efforts focused on land-use issues and workforce needs are underway. It is expected that several tens of thousands of individuals will be reached through a combination of direct outreach in community forums and printed materials disseminated through a network of extension agents and web site.