SUSQUEHANNA
RIVER VALLEY CONSORTIUM
Facilitating Data Driven Change
The physical environment is essential to what central Pennsylvania is. The Susquehanna River is the most obvious unifying feature in this region. Mountains, valleys, and forests dot the landscape, shaping social and economic life here. Some areas are protected while others have been exploited and destroyed.
Natural Resources​
Natural resources in Pennsylvania play a pivotal role in the economic health of the state. In the 1800's Penn's Woods were clear cut to feed the need for timber across the country. In the early 1900's, and continuing to some extent today, coal was king. Natural gas mined from the Marcellus Shale Formation is the most valuable and abundant natural resource in Pennsylvania today. Natural resource extraction has a cost associated with it, and Pennsylvanians are balancing the tradeoff between its costs and benefits today and will continue to do so in the future.
Energy​
Energy drives modern lives. The source of energy is vital to understand how to continue providing it to serve the needs of individuals and businesses in the region. Coal, natural gas, nuclear, wind, solar, and geothermal energy all contribute to satisfy the needs of Pennsylvania's energy consumers.
Biodiversity​
Temperate forests, river and creek ecosystems, and floodplain environments all combine in Pennsylvania's beautiful landscape. The increase in globalization has led to the introduction of invasive species, some of which crowd out and kill species native to Pennsylvania. Tracing the distribution of organisms across the state is vital to protecting native species here.
Environment
Pollution​
The cost of economic revitalization, especially with an economy based on natural resource extraction is often pollution. Unbreathable air, undrinkable water, unbearable noise are the signs of unabated pollution. Policies and laws are in place to protect against that dismal future, but tracking their effectivness and the dynamic concentrations of pollutants across the region is key to understanding the changing quality of life for its people.
Food​
Pennsylvania's dynamic immigration patters have led to an immense variety in food across the state. The prevalence of farms in the Susquehanna Valley give rise to strong local and organic movements. Amid all of the bounty provided by the Susquehanna, hunger remains an issue. Combating that as well as the prohibitive cost of eating organic, non-processed foods remains a challenge for social organizations and the government here in the central Susquehanna River Valley.
