A Penn State research team is currently researching Energy Development, Groundwater Quality and Public Health in Beaver, Washington, and Greene Counties, and you can participate in the first focus group for this study, to be held at Penn State Beaver on June 23, 6:30-8:00 p.m.

Penn State’s research organizers are looking for 12-15 community members to share their insights at this June 23 focus group.

The focus group will last approximately 90 minutes. It will be recorded and transcribed, but recordings and transcriptions will only be shared with the research team.

Your participation is voluntary and you can stop participating at any time. All responses will also be anonymized.

Why participate? Your input will inform a geoscientific analysis of a water sampling database collected in the region (7,000 samples).

The findings will be shared with representatives from government agencies including the US Environmental Protection Agency, the state Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Health—all while keeping your personal data confidential.

The study is funded by the Health Effects Institute—Energy, the National Science Foundation, the Institutes of Energy and Environment and Earth and Environmental Systems Institute at Penn State.

Click Here to register for the June 23 focus group from 6:30 - 8:00 pm at Penn State Beaver.

Or get in touch with Dr. Jennifer Baka, the Principal Investigator or Owen Harrington, a Penn State Graduate Student in Geography who will help conduct the focus groups in all three counties: Dr. Baka: jeb525@psu.edu  or call 814-865-9656; Mr. Harrington: ofh5033@psu.edu.

Visit the Energy Development, Groundwater Quality and Public Health project webpage.

(Reprinted from Bobscaping Blog and Beaver County Marcellus Awareness Community

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-- Post-Gazette: Allegheny County Executive Defends Record On Fracking Amid Calls For Drilling Ban In County Parks

-- Beaver County Times: Big Sewickley Creek Plan Pits Drilling Company Against Watershed Defenders

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[Posted: June 16, 2022]

6/20/2022