Earth Science Week

WHEREAS, the education and knowledge base of Virginia's citizenry is critical to the development, prosperity and well-being of our Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, earth science is the study of Earth's physical properties, structure and development, and it encourages positive stewardship through the understanding and appreciation of our planet's invaluable resources-many of which are found in abundance in our Commonwealth-and their relevance to our daily lives; and

WHEREAS, the majority of our energy resources, including coal, petroleum, natural gas, and nuclear fuels come from geologic sources; and

WHEREAS, many of the materials on which our society depends, including metals, glass, stone, and plastics comes from the earth; and

WHEREAS, our agriculture depends, in large part, on fertilizers derived from rock and fossil fuel sources;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Robert F. McDonnell, do hereby recognize October 14-20, 2012 as EARTH SCIENCE WEEK in our COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens; and

FURTHERMORE, as we move forward in making our Commonwealth the Energy Capital of the East Coast, I encourage our teachers, students and all Virginia citizens to take an active interest in learning about Earth's invaluable energy resources, and I implore all of our geoscientists to share with us their valuable knowledge and expertise.