Stocktaking and strategizing on transboundary aquifer work

Invitation for pre-conference workshop at 46th IAH International Congress, Malaga, Spain

International work on transboundary aquifers is reaching a noteworthy nominal 20-year anniversary. Around the turn of this century, the Internationally Shared Aquifer Resources Management (ISARM) programme set out to elucidate the prevalence and facts of transboundary aquifers globally. These two decades of exploratory and multi-stakeholder participatory journey are now marked with a pre-conference event at the 46^th IAH International Congress in Malaga, Spain.

This strategy workshop, organized by the IAH Commission on Transboundary Aquifers and taking place at the Centre of Hydrogeology, University of Malaga, in Malaga, Spain, on 22 September 2019, will make a critical stocktaking of the work and outcomes achieved so far in terms of addressing transboundary aquifers and the special challenges and opportunities these water resources present. While congratulating the international community on the large strides in getting transboundary aquifers on the global map, both literally and strategically, the meeting will also critically evaluate where we are, and what are the major challenges in further advancing the sustainable and equitable use and management of these resources. Transboundary groundwater resources are becoming strategic and under the spotlight around the world with increasing water demands and climate change. One example is provided by the Guarani Aquifer between several South American states and how to ensure its joint management at diverse geographic scales, which is unique to this immense aquifer. Other examples of work on transboundary aquifers, are given by various GRIPP partners, for example IGRAC (here) and IWMI (here), and other partners.

The invitation and preliminary program for the workshop are given here.

Interested IAH and non-IAH members can attend this complementary workshop for free, but attendants are requested to register for this event by submitting this registration form  by 15 July 2019. There is also a request to provide, by the same deadline, feedback to a questionnaire related to the challenges and strategy for transboundary aquifer management and for the future focus of the IAH Commission on Transboundary Aquifers.

[1] Registering for/taking part in the transboundary aquifer event does not entitle you to attend the IAH congress. See www.iah2019.org for IAH congress registration.

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