Air pollution from human activity has led to the deposition of chemical elements over much of the northeastern United States. I am an environmental and ecosystem scientist who has studied air pollution effects in high-elevation forests in New England and New York for the last two decades. Colleagues and I have examined the cycling of elements such as nitrogen, calcium and lead as they move from the atmosphere through vegetation and soils and into streams. Understanding the legacy of lead pollution in forest soils has been a major focus of my work.

In a number of related projects, we have described the decline of montane red spruce and studied winter water relations and micrometeorology in montane coniferous forests. More recently, I have examined the relationship between individual choices and environmental impact including personal choices that influence energy consumption. Over the years, I have received funding from the National Science Foundation, the USDA Forest Service, the Environmental Protection Agency and private foundations. I teach a number of environmental science and studies courses and served as founding chair of the College Board Advanced Placement Environmental Science Development Committee.

I selected Oil on the Brain: Adventures from the Pump to the Pipeline by Lisa Margonelli as the basis for the 2011 Class Lecture at Dartmouth.  This informative and engaging multidisciplinary analysis of oil—where it comes from and what happens as it gets to the end user—will serve as the starting point for a discussion of our dependence on fossil fuel and some impacts of its extraction and use.  My lecture will focus on: the global energy picture, including US consumption and the growing impact of China on the environment; the effects of oil extraction and use on humans in developing countries; the difficulty US consumers have appreciating the magnitude of their energy habits; and energy use at Dartmouth College. For a file of links and references from the lecture, click here.