An interview with Paul Witherspoon, distinguished hydrogeologist from the USA

Abstract

On 30 October 2007, Paul Witherspoon was interviewed by Allan Freeze as part of the Hydrogeologist Time Capsule program (http://timecapsule.iah.org). The interview was organized by Iraj Javandel of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), USA and sponsored in part by LBNL. Filming was carried out on the campus of the University of California at Berkeley by UCB Media Services. This short biographical profile is intended to accompany the videotaped interview posted on the Time Capsule website. It is based (in many cases, word for word) on autobiographical material provided to the authors by Paul Witherspoon, in preparation for the interview. Paul Witherspoon has been an influential research leader in hydrogeology for over 50 years. He has made significant contributions to the understanding of the flow of fluids in fractured and porous rock formations, and has applied his findings to a diverse set of societally important issues, including the development of geothermal energy, the use of underground gas storage, and the siting and design of nuclear waste disposal facilities. He has been an inspirational mentor over many years to a large number of well-known researchers in the hydrogeological community.