There's a region potentially rich in natural gas resources covering the majority of northern and western Pennsylvania, and many lives could be seriously affected if companies decide to drill there.
It's called Marcellus Shale, and author Alexandra Fuller has something to say about the matter.
As part of the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute's 2009 EarthTalks Spring Colloquium Series, Fuller will speak about "The Marcellus Shale Play: Boon or Burden?" at 4 p.m. Monday in 26 Hosler.
Michael Arthur, event organizer and geoscience professor, said the Marcellus Shale region is so large it could supply the United States with gas for 10 to 12 years.
There's a lot of debate about the area because it could produce a lot of money, but there are also potential environmental, social and cultural issues involved, Arthur said.
"It's kind of a double-edged sword," he said. "Boon or burden, clearly people are going to make money."
The reason Arthur said he decided to bring Fuller in as a speaker is because she has a "really impassioned view" of a similar situation in Wyoming, and she is a well-known and award-winning author.
Fuller was born in England but grew up in Rhodesia -- now Zimbabwe -- in Africa. While much of her writing is influenced by that period of her life, her most recent book, The Legend of Colton H. Bryant, focuses on the true story of an oil rig worker who is killed on the job.
She currently lives in Wyoming, which has lent itself to her research and views on the subject of domestic drilling and the energy crisis.
"I think it's unacceptable that we create such an incredible instability in the rest of the world because of our insatiable appetite," she said. "Energy independence is not an option."
Fuller said she isn't speaking to raise awareness or open people's eyes about the issue.
"What I'm really hoping is that people bring an open mind to the ideas," she said, adding she thinks many people aren't conscious of actual amount of domestic drilling.
Fuller said she believes the issue is no longer one with just a pro and a con side to it, but rather it's "a very gray shade of gray."
Americans need to have an honest conversation about energy and its true cost, she said.
"Fossil fuels will be coming to an end or will be the end of us," Fuller said.
Students may be interested in attending because of the transformative, colossal nature of the issues being discussed at the talks in the series. Whether or not students call Pennsylvania home, it's about education the subjects can provide, Arthur said.
"The idea is not to denigrate the industry or criticize people for wanting to make money," he said. "It's more to make people aware of the issues that can come."
