About the Earth Sciences Division

The Earth Sciences Division (ESD) is situated among 5 buildings on the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (Berkeley Lab) 200 acre site. The Division Director's office is located in Building 90 (room 1106). The ESD research and operations activities are supported at a level of more than $30 million a year, with a total of nearly 300 employees, UC faculty, guests, and students. ESD is organized into 5 Departments, 6 Programs, and, in addition to access to Berkeley Lab's major facilities, has its own facilities and centers, which supports researchers in conducting computational modeling, rock physics, isotope geochemistry, systems biology, microbial ecology, and field work in the subsurface, atmosphere, and ocean.

ESD was founded in 1977 supporting research in geothermal, nuclear waste and geosciences programs. For over 30 years, while the leadership of the ESD changed ESD's research areas remained true to supporting the earth, energy security, and the environment in: fundamental research in hydrogeology and reservoir engineering, geophysics and geomechanics, geochemistry, microbial ecology, and environmental engineering.

Currently, ESD brings together climate scientists, hydrogeologists, geochemists, geophysicists, microbiologists, computer scientists, and engineers, blending fundamental and applied and theoretical research to tackle some of the planet's most pressing issues, including:

• Improved oil recovery
• Energy resources
• Climate change
• Carbon sequestration
• Environmental remediation
• Nuclear energy and waste disposal

In keeping with the U.S. Department Of Energy (DOE) and Berkeley Lab's collective mission, it is ESD's mission to address local, national, and global problems focusing on fundamental, crosscutting science common to many energy resource problems and environmental issues.

ESD would like to thank its sponsors and collaborators, including the DOE and the University of California, the scientific community, and Berkeley Lab for their support.

Click on the links below to read more about the Earth Sciences Division:

• Division Director Leadership
• News and Events
• Organizational Chart

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the support of our major sponsors in the Department of Energy, which include the Office of Science, the Office of Fossil Energy, the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, and the Office of Environmental Management. We also appreciate the support received from other state and federal agencies such as the Bureau of Reclamation, the Department of Defense, the Environmental Protection Agency, and NASA. Lastly, we must also acknowledge and thank our industrial, as well as international collaborators, who provide both financial and in-kind support through various partnership projects, and who bring additional ideas, data, and experience to ESD.