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

古生物研究机构、康奈尔大学地球与大气科学系和康奈尔大学合作推广部门之间的合作伙伴关系正在开发一个集中、全面、客观的科学信息教育来源，内容涉及马塞勒斯页岩水力压裂对环境的潜在影响。马塞勒斯页岩正在整个阿巴拉契亚盆地开发，作为一种天然气资源。该RAPID奖项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，并大大加强了纽约州中南部的外展工作，该地区的钻探预计将于2010年春末开始。公众对这一问题的关注为提高公众的地球系统科学素养和开发教育资源和实践提供了机会，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。项目活动最终将扩展到Marcellus钻井的其他区域，特别是在PA和WV，在那里正在进行补充性的推广工作，重点是土地使用问题和劳动力需求。预期将通过社区论坛的直接外联和通过推广人员网络和网站传播的印刷材料相结合的方式接触到数万人。

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.