Fracking

Partner
Responsible Drilling Alliance

Summary
Our natural resources are something of vital importance to us as a nation—sometimes calling for preservation and other times utilization.  The Lehigh Fracking Team is working with the Responsible Drilling Alliance to further educate ourselves and citizens, in order to spread objective analysis of the many issues surrounding the development of natural gas through the hydraulic fracturing process. 

The Project
The Responsible Drilling Alliance is an education and advocacy coalition—a grassroots group of dedicated citizens who have formed an alliance and welcome members with the widest possible concerns, interests and ideologies. RDA membership includes parents and grandparents, students, business people, hunters, fishermen, farmers, hikers, teachers, truckers, those who have leased their land to a gas company, and those who refused.  RDA seeks to educate themselves and the public about deep shale gas drilling and all of its ramifications. Through outreach programs, events, public forums, and a weekly e-letter, RDA strives to balance the conversation with authenticity. RDA advocates for federal, state and local regulations needed to protect our economy, environment, health, safety and quality of life .

The RDA is seeking truth about the consequences of shale gas drilling and looking to educate landowners whether they should lease their land to the gas companies.  The organization is seeking to address issues of cultural impact, air quality, water quality, forest fragmentation, and economics to holistically assess the ongoing Marcellus Shale development.

The Lehigh Fracking Team must address a number of challenges related to the central topic of fracking:  these interrelated issues include educational awareness, issues of policy, and issues of technology.  The public, as well as politicians who directly affect policy, must be properly informed about issues related to fracking, as misinformation and unsubstantiated opinions undermine the semblance of truth the Lehigh Fracking Team aims to present.  Additionally, the Lehigh Fracking Team is surrounded by well-equipped engineering facilities and PhDs conducive to conducting technical research on different aspects of fracking and the potential effects on the surrounding ecosystem.  Addressing these issues from a balanced perspective is sure to be daunting challenge but one that the Lehigh Fracking Team looks forward to addressing in the coming years.

The team plans to collaborate with its sponsor, Ralph Kisberg from RDA, and possibly pursue specific research areas of interest to the RDA.  The team will strive to provide unbiased and objective work through evaluating the research topic holistically.  The team aims to employ technical engineering expertise with a focus in sustainable development of our natural resources to inform and educate citizens and interest groups alike on issues pertaining to hydraulic fracturing and natural gas development.

The EPA estimates that the United States is sitting atop 2,200 Tcf (trillion cubic feet) of technically recoverable natural gas—enough to last us almost one hundred years at our current consumption rate.  With this in mind, the Lehigh Fracking Group plans to continue to research and stay involved with the ongoing development of our natural resources for the indefinite future.  Plans for the future include additional trips to hydraulic fracturing sites, continued collaboration with the Responsible Drilling Alliance, and sustained research on current fracking issues.  An over-arching goal and ambition is for our independent research to be turned to as a reference for common citizens and interest groups alike because of the objective nature of a University sanctioned group to protect the environment, health, safety and quality of life, while keeping the improvement of the economy in mind.

Fracking Site with Beautiful Surrounding Countryside

Fracking Well in Lycoming County

Fracking Well Pad in Operation

Fracking Well Pad

Surrounding Countryside with Carved in Fracking Site

Water Pipeline Being Installed to Transport the Immense Amount of Water Required for Hydraulic Fracturing

The Team
Advisors:  Professor Bill Best
Students:  Teresa Chamberlain, Cassandra Dutt, Alec Entress, Alexandra Gordon, Kevin Hoogenboom, Sarah Miller, Connor Sage, and Thomas Witmer

Lehigh Fracking Group with Professors Orrs and Best

All the students working on this project are enrolled in an interdisciplinary honors program—either IDEAS or IBE.  These programs are jointly administered by the College of Engineering and of Applied Science or College of Business & Economics, respectively. Participation in these programs enables students to pursue diverse interests.  While pursuing coursework in different areas, students realize the intersection of ideas across traditional college boundaries and are supported in building their own autonomy based on their individual strengths and interests.