From rockhounding to consulting, it's natural for one UMR alum

Searching for marine invertebrate fossils in eastern Montana's Hell's Creek formation or trilobytes in Coal County, Okla., is a natural hobby for Dan Arthur, PetE'86. Even his children, Teresa, 9, and, Daniel Jr., 7, are into "rockhounding."

"Instead of fishing trips, I take them fossil hunting," says Arthur, 39. "They're very science-minded kids."       

Dealing with ancient fossils isn't Arthur's only interest. His passion for new ventures shows through Arthur, Langhus, Layne - LLC (doing business as ALL Consulting), a consulting company he started in 1999 with Mark Layne, PetE'85, MSPetE'87, PhD PetE'96, and Bruce Langhus.

"When we started, some people suggested we call the company 'Dan and the Docs,'" the ALL president, program/project manager and environmental/technology specialist jokes, referring to the fact that he's the only founder without a Ph.D.

Despite (or because of) the decision to go with a more traditional name, ALL has seen great success. In just two and a half years, the company has grown from the three founders to a staff of 25 that includes engineers, geologists and scientists, and has government and industry clients worldwide.

"We have a relatively set focus ... to use information technology for areas in a broad environmental sense," he says. This "broad environmental sense" applies to environmental science/planning, earth science and natural resources.

Among ALL's current projects is one for the Groundwater Protection Research Foundation (GWPRF) and the federal Bureau of Land Management. Specifically, ALL must find ways to use the water that is produced when coal bed methane is extracted from wells. According to Arthur, this coal seam aquifer water is of good quality, but historically, has been dumped into rivers instead of being used beneficially.

"In the kick-off meeting for the project, we asked, 'What could this water be used for so it's not wasted?'" he says. "It's another natural resource that you don't want to go to waste." From stock watering and irrigation to dust control and wildlife watering, ALL is looking at a variety of ways to safely use this water.

Another major project: ALL is working with the country of Oman on the Arabian peninsula to develop a system that during pumping, separates oil and water before it reaches the surface. This will increase oil production and prevent pollution.

"We're working on some incredible projects," Arthur says. Working with U.S. government and foreign agencies could seem daunting for some people, but not for Arthur. Before ALL, he was an enforcement officer for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Chicago and was in management at CH2M HILL, a consulting firm. Both gave Arthur an opportunity "to get involved in a lot of environmental issues and meet a lot of people" and gave him experience in negotiating with high-level representatives.

Though he does not consider himself a conservationist, Arthur does see himself as an environmentalist. "I'm pro- development in an environmentally prudent manner," he says. "Making choices that make sense. Those are really neat things to be involved in."

Where does his interest in the environment come from? Other than enjoying nature, Arthur believes it comes from the way he was raised. He grew up on a dairy farm in southern Missouri in a community a few miles outside of Bucyrus, Mo. "You get to do everything - and make sure you keep the cows from doing their thing over the water well," he says.

And the innovating spirit? Elmer and Edna Arthur, his grandparents, were the first people in the area to have running water. "My grandfather was sick of pumping water for the cows," Arthur recalls. The solution: a mail-order windmill from Sears Roebuck that pumped water into the wooden storage tanks in their attic.

Of course, Arthur, who resides in Tulsa, Okla., gives credit to his time at UMR. He met his wife, Joan (Maruska), ChE'84 and his business partner, Mark Layne, at UMR, where he was a member of the Sigma Pi fraternity. "I had lots of really good friends at Rolla," he says.

As for future ventures, Arthur hopes to be "president of a 300-person consulting company," naturally.